Pokemon has shared a tribute to the late voice actor James Carter Cathcart, who portrayed characters like Gary Oak, Professor Oak, James, and Meowth over the course of the anime's run. The tribute highlights some memorable moments featuring his voice work for these Pokemon characters, and reflects on his overall involvement with the franchise.

James Carter Cathcart passed away on July 8, 2025 at the age of 71, following a battle with throat cancer. In addition to his roles with Pokemon, the actor's voice was also featured in a number of other popular anime and game projects, including Sonic X, Yu-Gi-Oh, and One Piece.

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By Janine Engelbrecht

Now, the official Pokemon Twitter account has shared a tribute to the actor that brought so many childhood favorites to life. The post says that the company is saddened by his loss, and highlights that in addition to lending his voice to so many characters, he was also responsible for over 700 episodes worth of scripts for the Pokemon anime. The tribute acknowledges that his legacy will go on alongside Pokemon, continuing to "reach the hearts of Trainers everywhere." Numerous fans have since shared their shock and sorrow at the loss, and have wished his family and colleagues well.

Pokemon Anime Cast Losses

Although the casting for the English dub of the Pokemon anime changed over the years, Cathcart was there from the very first episode as Ash's taunting rival, Gary Oak. Sadly, he's not the only loss to the original cast of the anime. Fans of Pokemon mourned the loss of Rachael Lillis, who also passed away after a battle with cancer, back in 2024. Lillis was also one of the original cast members, serving as the original voice of Ash's companion Misty, and Team Rocket member Jessie. While the two actors didn't perform Jessie and James during the same periods of the show, fans were shocked at the loss of the voice actors who brought all three of the Team Rocket members to life. The two colleagues worked together on other projects, as well, with Cathcart and Lillis both appearing in the English anime dubs of classics like The Slayers, and Revolutionary Girl Utena.

The loss of Cathcart is tragic, and Pokemon's tribute to a figure that helped to make his characters so memorable is only appropriate. While he's sadly gone, fans who grew up with Pokemon will remember his voice and the characters he performed as well into the future.

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Release Date: 1997 - 2023
Network: TV Tokyo, TV Osaka, TV Aichi, TVh, TVQ, TSC
Directors: Shigeru Omachi, Koji Ogawa, Fumihiro Ueno, Hideki Hiroshima, Maki Kodaira, Makoto Ooga, Ayumi Moriyama, Keitaro Motonaga, Shigeru Ueda, Fumihiro Yoshimura, Minoru Ohara, Yoshitaka Makino, Kiyoshi Egami, Makoto Sokuza, Bjarne Heuser, Naoki Murata, Kenichi Nishida, Tomoe Makino, Masahiko Watanabe, Hiroaki Takagi, Tazumi Mukaiyama, Ryohei Horiuchi, Yoshihiro Oda, Hiromichi Matano
Writers: Junki Takegami, Atsuhiro Tomioka, Hideki Sonoda, Yukiyoshi Ôhashi, Yuka Miyata, Takeshi Shudo, Shouji Yonemura, Shinzo Fujita, Michihiro Tsuchiya, Deko Akao, Reiko Yoshida, Aya Matsui, Junichi Fujisaku
Franchise(s): Pokemon