Brendan O'Brien, The Original Voice Of Crash Bandicoot, Has Died At Age 60

The actor died in March and voiced the character from 1996-2004

Brendan O’Brien, the original voice of the energetic and genetically-engineered Crash Bandicoot from the video game franchise bearing his name, has died. He was 60 years old, and no cause of death has been given.

O’Brien began voicing Crash, a mutant eastern barred bandicoot in the franchise’s original installment, 1996’s Crash Bandicoot for the PlayStation, where he also voiced the scientist who experimented on Crash, Doctor Neo Cortex, and his seemingly Starscreamy subordinate Doctor Nitrus Brio. While he was recast as Cortex in favor of Clancy Brown for the sequel Cortex Strikes Back, he was still Crash and reprised his other roles, while adding Komodo Moe and Tiny Tiger to his repertoire. He would subsequently return for Crash Bandicoot: Warped. Crash Team Racing would be the one title in the series he’d work where he didn’t voice Crash. He would be back for Crash Bash, The Wrath of Cortex, The Huge Adventure, and Crash Bandicoot 2: N-Tranced. His final title in the franchise would be in 2004’s Crash Bandicoot Purple: Ripto's Rampage, part of a crossover with Spyro the Dragon, it and N-Tranced being titles for the Game Boy Advance.

His Legacy.com obituary, which states O’Brien died on March 23, highlights his affinity for music. He began acting at 10 years old, appearing onscreen with his dad, Edmond O’Brien, who was a guest star in the first episode of The Streets of San Francisco. Edmond was an Academy Award winner for Supporting Actor in Seven Days In May, with other credits including Fantastic Voyage and The Wild Bunch. His mother, Olga San Juan, was an actress as well, known for her period with Paramount. Brendan’s subsequent acting roles include 3 Ninjas: High Noon at Mega Mountain, P.U.N.K.S., Race to Space, and Grindhouse, as well as Candid Camera and the Spawn animated series. Following a 15+ year acting hiatus, he showed up in an episode of Riverdale. He is survived by his wife of over 22 years, Ingrid Behrens.

Source: Legacy