Meet Eric Bauza, the iconic voice from some of the Looney Tunes most-loved characters – Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck and Porky Pig.
By Ara Jansen
If Eric Bauza did his class work, he was allowed to get on the school PA and tell a joke or do an impression.
Ever the class clown, he became that guy who got on the mic at assemblies, rallies and before sports events showing off his impressions of late-night television characters or the likes of Ace Ventura, Forrest Gump and the cartoon characters he loves so much.
It paved the way for an eventual career as an award-winning voice artist – and these days voicing some of the screen’s most well-known and loved characters Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, Tweety and Marvin the Martian.
“My family were relieved when they found out I wasn’t crazy and all these voices would lead to a paycheck and a career,” laughs Eric as he delivers the last part in one of his famous voices.
“They know how important it is to me and how much it affects my life. I would still be a big fan of all these characters even if I wasn’t part of this heritage.”
However, they are still not thrilled with his fashion sense – a constant parade of cartoon t-shirts, honouring the characters he loves.
“It has been an amazing career so far, both in the opportunities I have had and the people I have met and worked with. I just can’t help but want to share that.”
The 45-year-old Filipino Canadian now lives in LA. He hails from the Toronto district of Scarborough and shares his birth town with the likes of actors Eric McCormack and Mike Myers, filmmaker and Elton John’s husband David Furnish and musicians The Barenaked Ladies and The Weeknd, amidst a long list of famous types.
A two-time Children and Family Emmy winner, Eric owns a long list of television, film and commercial credits dating back 20 years, including Marvin the Martian for Nike’s Air Jordans.
He’s also the voice star of the new big screen animated sci-fi comedy adventure Looney Tunes: The Day the Earth Blew Up which opens this month.
The world is facing an alien invasion. The only hope is a stuttering duck and his porcine best friend. Somehow cartoon characters Porky Pig and Daffy Duck are just the animals to foil the plot and save everyone from a mysterious new bubble-gum flavour and the villain who wants to take over the world.
In the movie Eric voices best friends Porky Pig and Daffy Duck, Candi Milo voices Petunia Pig and the alien is Ally McBeal actor Peter MacNicol. Porky and Daffy are a highly energetic odd couple, constantly talking, yelling and panicking while trying to save the world.
“The energy is a big part of these performances no matter how subtle or extreme they are. It’s a balance and each character is as hard to do as the other.”
He says it was a challenge doing both Porky and Daffy as they talk to each other, dialogue whipping quickly between them.
What’s also challenging is that all these years later, Eric is also responsible for sometimes speaking new or modern words for the characters for the first time; ones that that weren’t in their vocabularies decades ago or when Mel Blanc was originally voicing them.
The movie has taken four years to complete and has kept the 2D legacy hallmarks of a Looney Tunes cartoon.
“It’s almost like an indie film, that people are going to discover when they see it. It’s not that common anymore and that’s good. It’s like a renaissance,” Eric says.
Being back on the big screen this year is like a return to when Looney Tunes cartoons were shown in cinemas from the 1940s to 1970s, but instead around the main feature.
“I think people can use a good laugh right now, thanks to the state of things and life in general. It’s nice to be able to turn your brain off and laugh along with other people and with loved ones,” Eric says.
“It’s a great honour to have had the opportunity to voice these characters. It’s like stepping into my first day of school all the time. I never feel stale which is a great thing.”
While he might be the voice of some of the world’s most famous cartoons, not everyone is convinced. Eric says his young son’s friends think he only does a fair impression and do not actually believe he’s the real deal.
“Ba-deep, ba-deep, that’s all folks!”
Looney Tunes: The Day the Earth Blew Up opens in cinemas March 27.
We have five double passes to Looney Tunes: The Day the Earth Blew Up to giveaway. Enter on our competitions page here.
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