Simpsons Episode Airing Nov. 15 Features Voice Actor Who Died Sunday

Eric Bauza’s debut on The Simpsons will air on Nov. 15 as a posthumous performance. The voice actor died on Sunday, Oct. 26, at the age of 46. His passing was attributed to hypertensive cardiovascular disease.

Bauza voiced two characters in the episode titled Dream Scenari-Moe. He played restaurateur Mr. Fong and newspaper editor Harry Metsali. Cesar Mazariegos, the show’s co-executive producer, confirmed the roles. Mazariegos stated that Bauza recorded his parts in two sessions. The production team had recently seen him at last month’s Creative Arts Emmys and another event the previous week.

Mazariegos described Bauza as a talented and kind collaborator. He noted that Bauza signed the show’s Wall-of-Fame and drew a detailed Bugs Bunny on it. This gesture revealed Bauza’s background as an animator. Mazariegos said the team was eager to work with Bauza again before the news of his death reached them.

Bauza held more than 400 acting credits over his career. In 2026, he lent his voice to projects including Chibiverse, Minions & Monsters, Rick and Morty, and Avatar: Seven Havens. He also voiced a large portion of the cast in this year’s film Coyote vs. Acme. His roles in that film included Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Tweety, and Elmer Fudd.

The episode also features guest voices from Meg Ryan and James Austin Johnson. Ryan plays a character named Sam, while Johnson voices Dr. De La Manana. The plot follows Moe as he enrolls in a sleep study to address his insomnia. The study provides him with romantic comedy dreams, though the fantasy comes with a hidden cost.

Sunil Malhotra, who recently took over the role of Apu on The Simpsons, shared a tribute on Instagram. He posted a photo from a 2017 panel at LMU where he first met Bauza. Malhotra also shared a text message Bauza sent him on Tuesday, the day before his death, congratulating him on the Apu casting. Malhotra called Bauza a generous peer who made him feel welcome in the industry.