Eric Bauza

Eric Bauza died suddenly on 25 October 2026, at the age of 46. His family announced the news on his Instagram account: "Eric Bauza, Emmy Award-winning voice actor and the modern voice of iconic Looney Tunes characters Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck, along with dozens of other beloved cartoon characters, has passed away suddenly. More details to come." No cause of death was made public. His death was reported by MovieWeb and ComicBook.com and drew tributes from fans and colleagues across the animation world.

Eric Bauza was born on 7 December 1979 in Scarborough, a suburban district of Toronto, Ontario, and was of Filipino descent. His father and grandfather were fans of classic cartoons such as the Looney Tunes. He said that watching Mr. Dressup as a child inspired his creative side, and he would draw along with the show's host. He attended Cardinal Newman Catholic High School (now St. John Henry Newman) in Scarborough from 1993 to 1996 and graduated from Centennial College in 2000.

Bauza began in animation as an intern at John Kricfalusi's studio Spumco during his third year of college, and became a production assistant on The Ripping Friends, which gave him his first voice role. His breakthrough was taking over Stimpy from Billy West in Ren and Stimpy "Adult Party Cartoon".

He went on to work on El Tigre: The Adventures of Manny Rivera, The Fairly OddParents, G.I. Joe: Resolute and Hero: 108, and voiced Lord Stingray on Superjail!, Marvin the Martian on The Looney Tunes Show, Dr. Psychobos on Ben 10: Omniverse, Buhdeuce on Breadwinners, the title character of The Adventures of Puss in Boots and Baby Fozzie on Muppet Babies. He also voiced Rash in the 2020 Battletoads game and performed stand-up comedy at the Laugh Factory in Los Angeles.

From the 2010s he became the main voice of the Looney Tunes, including Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, Tweety and Marvin the Martian, as well as Woody Woodpecker. For Looney Tunes Cartoons he won the first Children's and Family Emmy Award for Outstanding Voice Performance in an Animated Program, and he won further Emmys for Bugs Bunny Builders and Teen Titans Go!. He hosted the CBC Gem documentary series Stay Tooned in 2022, became the voice of Buster Bunny in Tiny Toons Looniversity in 2023, and took over the roles of Big Bob Belcher and Jimmy Pesto Sr. on Bob's Burgers.

When Warner Bros. shelved the finished film Coyote vs. Acme in 2023, Bauza became one of its loudest advocates, shouting "Release Coyote vs. Acme!" as Bugs and Daffy at the 2024 Annie Awards. The film was sold to Ketchup Entertainment and released in 2026, with Bauza voicing ten characters, including his first feature film performance as Bugs Bunny.

Bauza had a son, Ryker, born in 2016, with the animation director Jessica Borutski. In a 2023 interview with Animation World Network he said that, despite frequent reports to the contrary, the couple had never been married and were no longer together.

Bauza is remembered as the performer who carried the voices created by Mel Blanc into a new century, keeping Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck and their friends familiar to a new generation of children. His campaign for Coyote vs. Acme, and the film's eventual release, made him one of the few voice actors whose face became known to the wider public.