Eric Bauza, Modern Voice of Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck, Dies at 46
Eric Bauza, the voice actor who gave modern life to Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck and a long list of other Looney Tunes characters, has died. He was 46.
Bauza died suddenly on Sunday at his home, his family announced in a statement shared on Instagram. The family said further details would be shared at a later date. According to Los Angeles County Medical Examiner records cited by Variety, the cause was hypertensive cardiovascular disease.
“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,” his family wrote.
Following in Mel Blanc’s Footsteps
Born on Dec. 7, 1979, in Scarborough, Ontario, Bauza grew up near Toronto in a Filipino Canadian family. He fell in love with classic animation as a child, thanks to his father and grandfather, who were big Looney Tunes fans.
He began his career on the other side of animation, working as a character designer before shifting to voice work. Bauza first joined the Looney Tunes world in 2011, voicing Marvin the Martian on The Looney Tunes Show.
By 2020, he had become one of the franchise’s main voices, taking on Bugs Bunny in Looney Tunes Cartoons, a role he shared with Jeff Bergman, along with Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, Tweety and Marvin the Martian.
Stepping into roles made famous by Mel Blanc was no small task. Channing Dungey, chairman of Warner Bros. Television Group, said Bauza followed in the footsteps “of giants like Mel Blanc.”
An Emmy-Winning Career
Bauza’s work earned him three Children’s and Family Emmy Awards. In 2022, he won the first-ever award for Outstanding Voice Performance in an Animated Program for his work on Looney Tunes Cartoons. He went on to win for Bugs Bunny Builders in 2023 and for Teen Titans Go! in 2025.
His career stretched well beyond Looney Tunes. Bauza is credited with 935 voice roles across 249 titles, spanning TV shows, films, video games and shorts.
He voiced Lord Stingray on Adult Swim’s Superjail!, Dr. Psychobos on Ben 10: Omniverse and Woody Woodpecker in recent films. In 2023, he became the new voice of Buster Bunny on Tiny Toons Looniversity, and he took over the role of Jimmy Pesto on Bob’s Burgers.
‘Coyote vs. Acme’ and Final Projects
One of Bauza’s final major performances came in Coyote vs. Acme, the Looney Tunes film that was nearly shelved by Warner Bros. before Ketchup Entertainment distributed it earlier this year. In the film, Bauza voiced a long list of characters, including Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Tweety, Elmer Fudd, Foghorn Leghorn, Porky Pig and Road Runner.
He also voiced several characters in Space Jam: A New Legacy, including Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, Foghorn Leghorn, Elmer Fudd and Marvin the Martian.
At the time of his death, Bauza was in pre-production on two projects: Bye Bye Bunny: A Looney Tunes Musical, in which he was set to voice Daffy Duck, and The Dragon Masters, as The Shogun King.
Tributes Pour In
Warner Bros. remembered Bauza as “a unique voice talent who brought joy and laughter to millions around the world.”
Fellow voice actor Grey DeLisle also paid tribute, calling him “one of the most talented, kind, funny, generous souls.” His Breadwinners co-star Alexander Polinsky said on social media, "He was a good person. He was a sweetheart. He was very fun to work with. He was just a consummate professional."
Critics had long recognized his range. The Hollywood Reporter once wrote that Bauza had quietly become the voice of an entire cartoon universe.
Bauza is survived by his wife, Jessica, whom he married in 2016, and their son.
For generations of fans, Bauza’s voice became part of the soundtrack of childhood, carrying the spirit of characters who have made audiences laugh for nearly a century.
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