Voice actor Kevin Conroy has died. He was 66.
The actor, who voiced the iconic Dark Knight across many of DC’s Batman animated series died on Thursday (10 November), Warner Bros announced.
His voiceover agent Steven Neibert confirmed the news to The Independent, writing: “The voice-over community lost one of the greats. I am completely devastated as I worked with him for over 25 years.”
Casting and dialogue director Andrea Romano added in a statement: “Kevin was far more than an actor whom I had the pleasure of casting and directing – he was a dear friend for 30+ years whose kindness and generous spirit knew no boundaries.
“Kevin’s warm heart, delightfully deep laugh and pure love of life will be with me forever.”
Conroy began his 30-year run voicing the titular superhero in 1992’s Batman: The Animated Series, which ran until 1996.
After the series concluded, he continued his role across a variation of nearly 60 productions, including 15 films and 400 episodes of television, in addition to video games.
And in recent years, he had become a fixture on the comic convention circuit.
Born in Westbury, New York in November 1955, Conroy was raised in Westport, Connecticut. He later attended the prestigious music school Julliard, where he studied acting, alongside actor Christopher Reeves and was roommates with the late Robin Williams.
He went on to pursue stage acting, before eventually landing roles on numerous 1980s TV series like Dynasty, Tour of Duty and Ohara. He also appeared on the soap operas Search for Tomorrow and Another World, with guest appearances on Cheers, Murphy Brown, Spenser: For Hire and Matlock.
While Conroy was best known for his work in animation, in 2019, he finally made his transition into DC’s live-action universe to play Bruce Wayne in CW’s Crisis on Infinite Earth’s crossover event.
Following the news of the actor’s death, former co-stars have shared tributes, including Mark Hamill, who voiced Conroy’s onscreen antagonist, The Joker.
“Kevin was perfection,” Hamill told THR in a statement. “He was one of my favourite people on the planet, and I loved him like a brother. He truly cared for the people around him – his decency shone through everything he did. Every time I saw him or spoke with him, my spirits were elevated.”
Earlier today (11 November), Conroy’s former co-star Diane Pershing, who voiced Poison Ivy, broke the news on Facebook, writing: “Very sad news: our beloved voice of Batman, Kevin Conroy, died yesterday. He’s been ill for a while but he really put in a lot of time at the cons, to the joy of all of his fans. He will be sorely missed not just by the cast of the series but by his legion of fans all over the world… RIP, friend.”
