Peter Cullen, Beloved Voice of Eeyore and Disney Afternoon Stars, Dies at 85

Peter Cullen, Beloved Voice of Eeyore and Disney Afternoon Stars, Dies at 85

August 27, 2026

Voice actor Peter Cullen has died at the age of 85. Cullen brought many popular characters to life with his voice throughout his career. This includes voicing Eeyore in the Winnie the Pooh franchise and Optimus Prime in the Transformers animated series. This is a role he reprised later in both the film and TV franchises.

News of the Canadian voice actor’s death was shared by his agent, Kevin Motley. “Peter Cullen passed away peacefully, surrounded by his loving family – and held in the hearts of his many friends and countless fans worldwide,” Motley said in a statement. “His family asks that you honor his remarkable legacy by serving your communities and leading others with compassion, integrity, and loyalty and always remember ‘be strong enough to be gentle.’”

Throughout his six-decade career, Cullen brought hundreds of characters to life with his voice. On top of voice work for Winnie the Pooh and Transformers, he also lent his voice to the following series:

The Smurfs
DuckTales
Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers
Ghostbusters
Voltron: Defender of the Universe
Alvin & the Chipmunks
Donkey Kong
Heathcliff & the Cadillac Cats
Dragon’s Lair
The Addams Family
Dungeons & Dragons
Gummi Bears
Rainbow Brite
Saber Rider and the Star Sherrifs
BraveStarr
The Savage Dragon
Widget
World Watch
Spider-Man (1980’s version)
G.I. Joe (several iterations)
Many more

Cullen was born on July 28, 1941, and began his career in radio in Canada. His big break was when he was hired as the announcer for The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour. This kicked off a six-decade career that saw him being a regular on The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour (1971-1974) and other variety shows.

As the 1970s began to draw to a close, Cullen found himself mainly working by voicing animated projects. By 1984, he was voicing Optimus Prime for the first time in the 1984 series Transformers. Disney fans will recognize his voice as Admiral Grimmitz in DuckTales, Monterey Jack in Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers, and since 1988, he has voiced Eeyore in multiple series.

Peter Cullen is survived by his four children, Angus, Claire, Pilar, and Clay.

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