Fans and creators alike are mourning the loss of actor Peter Cullen, who was responsible for giving the world the perfect Optimus Prime, along with various other roles throughout his legendary career. On top of bringing to life striking characters, Cullen has been well known in the anime world for some time. Decades ago, the man who breathed life into the Autobot leader was also responsible for helping to sell the anime medium to the masses. Long before the likes of Crunchyroll, there was one platform that introduced countless viewers to anime, and this channel is honoring the prolific voice actor in the best way.
Videos by ComicBook.com
When Toonami first debuted in 1997, Peter Cullen lent his talents not to be a part of the cast of anime such as Dragon Ball Z, Rurouni Kenshin, Mobile Suit Gundam Wing, and many more, but rather to sell them to the masses. Thanks to Cullen’s booming voice and line delivery, the voice actor helped to sell countless series that aired on the Cartoon Network programming block. With his assistance, some of these anime became major hits that might otherwise never have gained the same notoriety. Mourning with the rest of the world, Adult Swim has paid tribute to Cullen by sharing one of his best monologues in hyping up Gundam Wing. The platform shared the perfect farewell message for Peter as well: “Rest in power, Peter Cullen. One of one. You will be missed.”
Farewell Optimus
Adult Swim might have decided to focus on Gundam Wing for this tribute, but this is far from the only narration Cullen created for Toonami. Anime and Western cartoons alike were given amazing marketing thanks to Peter’s voice alone, with the likes of Batman Beyond, Outlaw Star, Ronin Warriors, and even Transformers Armada all getting a boost. Unfortunately, Cullen would leave Toonami when it was originally cancelled in 2008, and even though the block would be merged with Adult Swim in 2012 to receive new life, Peter would not return alongside it. Across social media, fans have been sharing Cullen’s countless videos made for Toonami, with all of them still holding up to this day.
Peter Cullen’s biggest break in his voice acting career, of course, was with the Transformers’ Autobot leader, with the voice actor first starting to bring the character to life all the way back in 1984. Ever since that year, Cullen wasn’t just routinely brought back to voice the character over the years, but was also given the role of the live-action Prime across several feature-length films. While others have taken on the role, such as Chris Hemsworth in Transformers One, you’d be hard-pressed to find anyone who doesn’t see the mark that Cullen left on the franchise.
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