Eric Bauza, Voice Acting Legend Behind Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck, Dead at 46

Eric Bauza, the voice acting legend behind Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, and countless other classic characters, has died at 46.

Confirmation of Bauza's passing arrived in a post shared on his Instagram account. As reported by KTLA, the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner's Office said he died October 25, 2026, of hypertensive cardiovascular disease.

Additional details surrounding the sudden announcement remain unclear. His family promised to share more soon with a message posted on social media.

"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," a message from his family said. "More details to come."

Bauza has such a thorough career in animation and voice acting that almost everyone who has enjoyed any TV shows, movies, or games in the last 25 years has probably heard his work. His time lending his unforgettable talent in the industry started with smaller roles in the 2000s, including spots in World of Warcraft, El Tigre: The Adventures of Manny Rivera, Avatar: The Last Airbender, The Sims 2, Chowder, and Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel, just to name a few, but it wasn't long before he graduated to become the prolific actor he's known as today.

In the 2010s, Bauza took on parts in video games like Batman: Arkham City, Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance, and Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy 13. Eventually, his work in animation took him to the Looney Tunes universe, where he would go on to play modern iterations on characters like Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Elmer Fudd, Marvin the Martian, and many, many others.

"I’m in complete shock and disbelief," Phineas and Ferb's Vincent Martella said. "A tremendously talented and kind coworker who I always had great conversations with and learned from. Sending so much love to his family. He was a giant. A titan in our industry."

More recently, pop-culture fans may have caught him voicing a few names in Invincible or The Super Mario Galaxy Movie. He also played characters in kids-programming-turned-horror-film Buddy, as well as High on Life 2. Moviegoers heard him reprise his role as Bugs Bunny and other classic Looney Tunes characters in the once-shelved Coyote vs. Acme when it made its way to theaters in August of this year. You can also hear him as Jin-Woo, Kuzon, Pich, and more in Avatar: Seven Havens.

For all intents and purposes, Bauza was a legend not just in animation but entertainment in general. You could fill a book just listing the roles he's played, and that's exactly why the internet has already lit up with friends, fans, and fellow entertainers posting their condolences. IGN interviewed Bauza about how he fought to save Coyote vs. Acme in 2024. You can see some of the ways the internet is remembering the star below.

Still can’t believe it. Eric Bauza was one of the most talented, kind, compassionate, lovable, giving, and wonderful people I’ve ever known. We worked shoulder to shoulder every week during my most formative years. He married my wife and I. We were some of the first people to hold each other’s children. We shared our hopes and dreams and watched each other grow, and I witnessed him become the actor, man, and father he always wanted to be. The world will be a dimmer place for his loss. Love you, buddy.— Robbie Daymond (@robbiedaymond) October 26, 2026

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Still can’t believe it. Eric Bauza was one of the most talented, kind, compassionate, lovable, giving, and wonderful people I’ve ever known. We worked shoulder to shoulder every week during my most formative years. He married my wife and I. We were some of the first people to hold each other’s children. We shared our hopes and dreams and watched each other grow, and I witnessed him become the actor, man, and father he always wanted to be. The world will be a dimmer place for his loss. Love you, buddy.

"I am at a loss for words," Winnie the Pooh actor Jim Cummings shared in a reply to the Instagram post. "Such a young kind man."

"My life was immeasurably changed for the better by having met Eric Bauza," El Tigre creator Jorge R. Gutierrez said. "He just made everything he worked on better. A generational talent. A legend. I would write and design characters giddy thinking how he would bring them to life. And behind the scenes, an incredibly kind, humble and open-hearted good dude. How lucky we all were to have been able to witness his talent shine. And boy did it shine!!! My heart goes out to his family and friends. Adios, amigo. You will never be forgotten."

"I’m so sorry," Ghost of Yōtei star Erika Ishii said. "Much love to you and the rest of the family. He was a good man, a literal voice for change, advocacy, and a pioneer in animation, not to mention the Asian American community. The rest of the voice acting community is here for anything."

I still cant believe this is real. I'm absolutely numb right now. This feels like a bad dream. Eric Bauza was not only one of the most gifted people to grace the voice acting industry and a phenomenally talented artist, but one of the humblest, kindest, most supportive souls in the business. He had the warmest smile and was always sincere. He let his talent speak for itself and made everyone feel like he was their biggest fan. He will always be a legend but I'm devastated that I'll never be able to give him a hug, or hear him joke, or see him smile again. Fuck, man.— Josh Keaton🇵🇪🏴✊🏼 (@joshkeaton) October 26, 2026

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I still cant believe this is real. I'm absolutely numb right now. This feels like a bad dream. Eric Bauza was not only one of the most gifted people to grace the voice acting industry and a phenomenally talented artist, but one of the humblest, kindest, most supportive souls in the business. He had the warmest smile and was always sincere. He let his talent speak for itself and made everyone feel like he was their biggest fan. He will always be a legend but I'm devastated that I'll never be able to give him a hug, or hear him joke, or see him smile again. Fuck, man.

Eric Bauza was so kind to me and everyone he interacted with. Such an exuberant and lively soul who never said no when asked to voice these iconic characters. He will be missed. https://t.co/wK0gczaRmT— Matt Neglia (@NextBestPicture) October 26, 2026

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Eric Bauza was so kind to me and everyone he interacted with. Such an exuberant and lively soul who never said no when asked to voice these iconic characters. He will be missed. https://t.co/wK0gczaRmT

this fucking sucks, what a loss— Arin Hanson (@egoraptor) October 26, 2026

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this fucking sucks, what a loss

Eric Bauza dying might be the worst thing to happen to animation in like decades, im so fr, that man was the modern day Mel blanc. He was SO passionate about carrying on those characters to the modern day, he was such an amazing actor and created so many characters of his own.— 𝙎𝙤𝙧𝙩_𝙤𝙛_𝘼𝙢𝙪𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙜 (@sortofamusing) October 26, 2026

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Eric Bauza dying might be the worst thing to happen to animation in like decades, im so fr, that man was the modern day Mel blanc. He was SO passionate about carrying on those characters to the modern day, he was such an amazing actor and created so many characters of his own.

Eric Bauza and I didn’t cross paths very often, but you’d never have known it for the genuine warmth and friendliness he showed me every time we did. His talent was only eclipsed by his humility, and that’s saying something. https://t.co/eDkOYMF2C0— Patrick Seitz (@Seitz_Unseen) October 26, 2026

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Eric Bauza and I didn’t cross paths very often, but you’d never have known it for the genuine warmth and friendliness he showed me every time we did. His talent was only eclipsed by his humility, and that’s saying something. https://t.co/eDkOYMF2C0

We have now lost Peter Cullen and Eric Bauza in the same year. This hurts.💔 https://t.co/uyHrztZc4C— ToonHive (@ToonHive) October 26, 2026

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We have now lost Peter Cullen and Eric Bauza in the same year. This hurts.💔 https://t.co/uyHrztZc4C

RIP Eric Bauza, the man who brought the Mel Blanc scream back to the Looney Tunes and so much more.— Ryan W. Mead (@rwmead) October 26, 2026

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RIP Eric Bauza, the man who brought the Mel Blanc scream back to the Looney Tunes and so much more.

We are deeply saddened to hear of Eric Bauza's passing. His voice talents extended to Ratchet & Clank, Spider-Man, Batman: Arkham City, MultiVersus and so many more. https://t.co/KZwIPnKIin— The Game Awards (@thegameawards) October 26, 2026

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We are deeply saddened to hear of Eric Bauza's passing. His voice talents extended to Ratchet & Clank, Spider-Man, Batman: Arkham City, MultiVersus and so many more. https://t.co/KZwIPnKIin

crazy to think that this is the last time we got to hear him voicing bugs bunny and it almost never got released. he should’ve had way more years ahead of him, still doesn’t make sense that he’s gone. RIP Eric Bauza https://t.co/VZCn8QS8xY— Jared Gilman (@realJaredGilman) October 26, 2026

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crazy to think that this is the last time we got to hear him voicing bugs bunny and it almost never got released. he should’ve had way more years ahead of him, still doesn’t make sense that he’s gone. RIP Eric Bauza https://t.co/VZCn8QS8xY

Photo by JC Olivera/Variety via Getty Images.