Who was Peter Cullen, the voice behind Optimus Prime and Eeyore?
Peter Cullen, the Canadian voice actor best known for voicing Optimus Prime in the ‘Transformers’ franchise and Eeyore in ‘Winnie the Pooh’, has died at the age of 85.
Cullen died on Wednesday at his home in Los Angeles, surrounded by his family, his agent Kevin Motley told. His family said he "passed away peacefully, surrounded by his loving family and held in the hearts of his many friends and countless fans worldwide."
They asked fans to honour his legacy "by serving your communities and leading others with compassion, integrity and loyalty and always remember 'be strong enough to be gentle.'"
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Born in Montreal, Canada, on July 28, 1941, Cullen graduated from the National Theatre School of Canada in 1963. He began his career in Canadian radio and television before moving to Hollywood, where he appeared on shows including ‘The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour’ and ‘The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour’.
Peter Cullen as Optimus Prime
Cullen first voiced Optimus Prime, the leader of the Autobots, in the original ‘Transformers’ animated series in 1984. His performance became synonymous with the character, and he returned to voice Optimus in the 1986 animated film ‘The Transformers: The Movie’.
When Michael Bay brought ‘Transformers’ to the big screen in 2007, Cullen returned as Optimus Prime after nearly two decades. He subsequently voiced the character in ‘Revenge of the Fallen’, ‘Dark of the Moon’, ‘Age of Extinction’, ‘The Last Knight’, ‘Bumblebee’ and ‘Rise of the Beasts’.
On his return in a 2007 interview with IGN, Cullen said, "I describe it as kind of slipping into an old pair of very comfortable shoes that you haven’t worn for a while. I just slipped right into them, and they felt as good as the last time I put them on."
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Cullen drew inspiration for Optimus Prime from his older brother Larry, a decorated U.S. Marine and Vietnam War veteran. "When he came home, I could see a change. He was quieter and he was a man and a superhero to me," Cullen said in a 2006 interview. "I watched him and listened to him. I’d never had an opportunity to do a superhero, and when that came, [that voice] just came right out of me, and I sounded like Optimus."
Eeyore and other memorable roles
Cullen was also beloved as Eeyore in ‘The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh’, beginning in 1988. He continued voicing the gloomy donkey across several ‘Winnie the Pooh’ projects.
In a 2014 interview with NPR, Cullen said, "I get an awful lot of reactions from, especially, young kids, when I go up and just say [in Eeyore’s voice], ‘Hello. Thanks for noticing me.’"
His other notable work included voicing K.A.R.R. in ‘Knight Rider’, King Kong in the 1976 film and the distinctive creature sounds in Arnold Schwarzenegger's ‘Predator (1987)’.
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Cullen received a Daytime Emmy nomination for ‘Transformers: Prime’ in 2011 and was honoured with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Children's & Family Emmy Awards in 2023.
He is survived by his children, Angus, Claire, Pilar and Clay.