Steve Blum

Steven Jay Blum was born on April 29, 1960, in Santa Monica, California. During his childhood, he faced challenges with his weight and bullying, finding an outlet in drawing, sculpting, music, and observing nature. At 12 years old, Blum worked in the comic section of his grandfather’s bookstore in Hollywood, where he developed a passion for cartoons and practiced impressions. His distinctive voice became noticeable after leaving a voicemail using the voice of Goofy, leading to requests for his impression skills.

Blum began his professional career in the mailroom of Empire International Pictures. An opportunity arose when the head of the mailroom offered him a voice acting role for a “Japanimation” project, recognizing his deep voice. He eventually advanced to become head of marketing at a studio, all while pursuing voice acting on the side. This dual path continued until he decided to fully commit to voice acting as his primary profession. His early work laid the groundwork for a career that would span decades and encompass numerous iconic roles.

Over his career, Blum has voiced characters such as Spike Spiegel in “Cowboy Bebop” and Wolverine across multiple Marvel productions, including “Wolverine and the X-Men.” In video games, he is known for roles like Jack Cayman in “MadWorld,” Captain Foley and Tank Dempsey in the “Call of Duty” series, Ares in “God of War,” and Sub-Zero in the “Mortal Kombat” franchise. In 2000, he became the voice of TOM, the robotic host of Cartoon Network’s Toonami block, a role he reprised when the block was revived in 2012. In 2012, Blum was recognized by Guinness World Records as the most prolific video game voice actor, with 261 credited appearances as of May 10, 2012. He also voices Heatblast, Ghostfreak, and Vilgax in the “Ben 10” franchise, Garazeb Orrelios in “Star Wars Rebels,” and Starscream in “Transformers: Prime.” Beyond voice acting, he co-founded Blumvox Studios, an educational platform for aspiring voice actors.