Brendan O’Brien, the Original Voice of Crash Bandicoot, Dies at 60

Brendan O’Brien, the actor credited with coming up with the original voice of Crash Bandicoot, has died. He was 60.

O’Brien’s death was reported in an obituary on Legacy.com, where he was remembered for his talents as both a musician and an actor. It included a brief passage about his time on Crash Bandicoot.

One of his proudest moments was coming up with the original voices for the “Crash Bandicoot” video games during the Naughty Dog years of 1996 to 2004. He encouraged nostalgic Crash fans in their own pursuits and loved signing their memorabilia. Like music, designing character voices for animation, radio and video games came naturally to him.

Brendan O’Brien was the originaly voice of Crash Bandicoot. Source: Legacy.com.

In the wake of the news of O’Brien’s passing, other tributes appeared on social media, including one from the official Crash Bandicoot account.

“Sharing our sincere condolences to Brendan O’Brien’s loved ones for his passing. He was an incredible talent who brought Crash Bandicoot and other Crash characters to life. He will forever live on in the hearts of Crash fans,” the account wrote.

Sharing our sincere condolences to Brendan O’Brien’s loved ones for his passing. He was an incredible talent who brought Crash Bandicoot and other Crash characters to life. He will forever live on in the hearts of Crash fans. https://t.co/Cp9nBeTMgU

— Crash Bandicoot (@CrashBandicoot) May 15, 2023

O’Brien’s length career included appearances in Grindhouse and Riverdale, but he was best-known for his work on Crash Bandicoot, where he played numerous roles including the titular bandicoot, Doctor Neo Cortex, and Tiny Tiger. The current Crash Bandicoot voice actor is Scott Whyte, who took over the role with Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time.

Kat Bailey is a Senior News Editor at IGN as well as co-host of Nintendo Voice Chat. Have a tip? Send her a DM at @the_katbot.