Eric Bauza dies aged 46: the voice of Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck, and the characters he leaves behind

Eric Bauza, the voice actor who brought Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck and much of the Looney Tunes family to a new generation of viewers, has died aged 46. His family shared the news on his Instagram account on Sunday 25 October, saying he had "passed away suddenly" and that more details would follow.

The Los Angeles County medical examiner has since listed the cause of death as hypertensive cardiovascular disease, according to reports in the US. The news came as a shock to animation fans around the world, many of whom had grown up with the characters he voiced without ever seeing his face.

Born in Scarborough, Toronto, in December 1979, Bauza began his voice career on The Ripping Friends in 2001 and went on to build more than 400 acting credits. He spent around 15 years working with Warner Bros Animation, and over that time he became the studio's go-to performer for its best-known characters, following in the footsteps of the legendary Mel Blanc.

For younger audiences, his was the voice behind Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck in Looney Tunes Cartoons and Bugs Bunny Builders. He also voiced Porky Pig, Tweety, Elmer Fudd, Foghorn Leghorn and Marvin the Martian, and cinema audiences heard several of those characters in Space Jam: A New Legacy in 2021.

Capturing the timing and attitude of characters first created more than 80 years ago is no small feat, and his work earned him three Children's and Family Emmy Awards, for Looney Tunes Cartoons, Bugs Bunny Builders and Teen Titans Go!. The first of those, in 2022, was the first time the category for outstanding voice performance in an animated programme had been awarded.

For now, the many hours of cartoons he leaves behind mean that Bugs, Daffy and the rest of the gang will keep sounding the way a whole generation of children came to know them.

Images: Warner Bros.