Eric Bauza, the Emmy Award-winning voice actor who brought to life such characters as Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck, most recently in Coyote vs. Acme, has died at 46, his family announced.
“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,” they wrote on Instagram. “More details to come.”
Variety reported his cause of death as hypertensive cardiovascular disease, citing Los Angeles County Medical Examiner records.
Bauza, who had more than 400 voice credits, in projects as varied as Ne Zha 2 and this year’s sequel The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, graduated from the Radio, Television, and Film Program at the Centennial College of Applied Arts and Technology in Toronto, and started his career as an intern at Spümcø, Inc., best known for the The Ren & Stimpy Show.
Soon he got the chance to voice Stimpy. He went on to voice such iconic characters as Woody Woodpecker, Scrooge McDuck, Fozzie Bear, and many more.
He delighted in bringing back the chaotic, wild energy of Mel Blanc, voice of many of the original Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies cartoons. But he could also pull from live action influences, as he did for the role of Toad General in the Super Mario Galaxy Movie.
“He shouldn’t sound cute. He should not sound like every other adorable Toad. I actually took a lot of inspiration from Keith David. I just love that resonance that he has. He commands a lot of seriousness,” Bauza told Polygon earlier this year.
In a recent red carpet interview, he demonstrated his stunning improvisational skills, explaining — as he did their voices — that while he’s most often asked to do Bugs Bunny, his personal favorite is Daffy Duck.
He won his Emmy last year for Outstanding Voice Performer in a Children’s or Young Teen Program award for Teen Titans Go!” at the 3rd Annual Children’s and Family Emmy Awards.
Main image: Eric Bauza at the Children’s and Family Emmy Awards at Television City Studios on March 15, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images
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