Eric Bauza dead at 46: the Emmy-winning voice of Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck died at home on Sunday, 25 October 2026, from hypertensive cardiovascular disease, the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner found.
According to TMZ, the medical examiner ruled the death natural and named hypertensive cardiovascular disease, a heart condition linked to high blood pressure, as the cause. Sleep apnea and class 2 obesity were noted as other significant conditions. His family announced the loss on the same day in a statement on his Instagram account.
Eric Bauza dead: what his family and Warner Bros. have said
The family’s statement, posted on Sunday, 25 October 2026, called the death sudden and gave no detail on how Bauza died. It named him first as an Emmy-winning voice actor and then as the modern voice of two of animation’s best-known characters. The statement read:
“Eric Bauza, Emmy Award-winning voice actor and the modern voice of iconic Looney Tunes characters Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck has passed away suddenly. More details to come.”
Channing Dungey, chairman of Warner Bros. Television Group and U.S. Networks, also paid tribute, saying Bauza “brought joy and laughter to millions around the world.” She recognised his 15 years with Warner Bros. Animation and his commitment to continuing the Looney Tunes legacy.
Eric Bauza funeral and memorial service plans
The family has not announced funeral or memorial arrangements, saying only in its Instagram statement that more details would follow. Condolences have poured in online from fans and colleagues since the news broke on Sunday, 25 October 2026, with the focus on the characters he spent two decades bringing to life.
Eric Bauza dead: the career behind the voice
Bauza was born on Friday, 7 December 1979, in Scarborough, a Toronto suburb, to Filipino immigrant parents, and graduated from Centennial College in 2000. He started as a character designer and layout artist before moving into voice work, landing his first acting credit on The Ripping Friends in 2001. He went on to rack up more than 400 credits.
As the modern voice of Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck, he carried on the work of Mel Blanc, the original voice of the Looney Tunes. He also voiced Porky Pig, Tweety and Marvin the Martian across Space Jam: A New Legacy, The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie and Coyote vs. Acme, plus Stimpy, Puss in Boots and Baby Fozzie.
He won three Children’s and Family Emmy Awards, the first for Looney Tunes Cartoons in 2022. Bauza told an interviewer in 2023 that the job takes commitment: “You have to believe in Bugs Bunny.” He dedicated his back-to-back wins to Blanc and said in a March 2025 interview:
“As you know I dedicated both to the memory and performances and legacy of Mel Blanc, because he was such an idol for me.”
Voice acting lost another well-known name in December 2023, when James McCaffrey, the voice of Max Payne in the video game series, died aged 65. McCaffrey also starred in the firefighter drama Rescue Me on television.
Sources
- TMZ, Eric Bauza cause of death and family statement
- Fox News, Eric Bauza, Looney Tunes voice actor behind Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck, dead at 46
- ComicBook.com, Eric Bauza's cause of death revealed by LA medical examiner
- HipHopWired, Emmy-winning Looney Tunes voice actor Eric Bauza dies at 46
- Wikipedia, Eric Bauza
- Animation Magazine, Animation superstar Eric Bauza discusses his career (14 March 2025)
- TVLine, James McCaffrey, Rescue Me actor and voice of Max Payne, dead at 65
- Swisher Post, James McCaffrey dies: Cause of death, obituary, reactions
