Who voices Bluey and Bingo? Creator Joe Brumm spills the secret even fans don’t know
Bluey’s creator reveals who really voices Bluey and Bingo, and why their names never make the credits. Plus Bandit and Chilli’s origin stories.
There’s a reason you’ve never seen a name next to Bluey or Bingo in the credits. And once you know it, you’ll never look at the show the same way again.
Since landing on ABC Kids in October 2018, Bluey has gone from a low-key Aussie cartoon about a Blue Heeler pup to a full-blown global obsession. It’s the most-watched program in ABC iview history, Disney snapped it up for the US in September 2019, and it even airs dubbed into Mandarin on Youku in China. Not bad for a show about a family sitting around playing games.
But the real story isn’t the numbers. It’s who’s actually behind those voices, and why the show is so protective of them.
Who inspired Bluey and Bingo?
Creator Joe Brumm has been upfront that Bluey is basically his own parenting life on screen, drawn from raising his two daughters. The show leans hard into unstructured, self-directed play, kids making up their own games and running the show themselves, because that’s exactly what Brumm watched happen in his own house.
“Playing seems as natural to them as breathing,” he’s said, adding that watching kids invent their own elaborate games is what fascinates him most about parenting.
Executive producer Charlie Aspinwall also has two daughters, and between the two of them, that’s how Bluey and Bingo ended up as sisters rather than brothers.
Who voices Bluey and Bingo?
Here’s the twist. Bluey and Bingo, along with several of their friends, are voiced by children of the show’s own production crew. Not professional child actors. Not a casting call. Actual kids of the people making the show.
They’re never credited. Their names are never released. It’s a deliberate call to protect them from public attention while they’re still just kids going to school and living normal lives.
Are the Bluey voice actors kids?
Yes, genuinely. Bluey, Bingo and a handful of their friends are voiced by children connected to the production team, and according to Brumm, they’re literally the crew’s own kids. It’s part of why the show sounds so unmistakably real. There’s no adult trying to sound like a five-year-old. It’s an actual five-year-old.
Why aren’t the Bluey kids credited?
Privacy, plain and simple. Keeping their identities out of the public eye means these kids get to grow up without being recognised, without the pressure, and without their childhood becoming part of the show’s marketing. It also means every giggle, tantrum and mispronounced word on screen is completely unscripted-sounding, because in a lot of ways, it is.
Bandit’s voice: Dave McCormack landed the role by accident
Dad Bandit is voiced by David McCormack, best known as frontman of ’90s indie band Custard. He’ll tell you straight up he’s not an actor and never planned to be one.
“A friend of a friend said someone was doing a show about a cartoon dog and can I read,” he explained. “I said, ‘Yeah, I can read’. And that was about it.”
He assumed it would be a one-off “webisode” after the first episode. Instead, as he puts it, “it’s bigger than all of us.”
Chilli’s voice: Melanie Zanetti knew it was special from the pilot
Mum Chilli is voiced by actor Melanie Zanetti, who says she clocked how good the show was the moment she read the pilot script, even if she didn’t predict the global takeover that followed.
“It’s so true to life,” she said of the show’s appeal. “Parents look at it and say, this is my reality.”
Bandit and Chilli’s voice actors didn’t meet for four years
Dave McCormack and Melanie Zanetti meet for the first time
Dave McCormack and Melanie Zanetti recorded their roles as a married couple for four straight years before meeting in person, finally crossing paths in November 2022.
On The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Zanetti explained they record separately from different cities, with Fallon getting the reveal that the on-screen parents were basically strangers off screen.
McCormack pictured something completely different when he signed on. “I thought it would be all of us sitting around a table, you know, like in the movies,” he said. “But we’re just isolated in our booths.”
Both of their casting stories are peak only-in-showbiz. McCormack got the ask in an elevator and figured it was a throwaway gig. Zanetti went through months of auditions before producers called to say they couldn’t find that same warmth in anyone else.
Turns out, that warmth is basically the entire show.
WATCH: Dave McCormack and Melanie Zanetti on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon
Celebrity guests on Bluey
The show regularly features guest appearances from celebrities, adding even more excitement for fans. For example, Hamish Blake and Eva Mendes have both voiced characters on Bluey. Let’s dive into the famous faces who have brought these lovable characters to life!
Australian stars voicing Bluey characters
Hamish Blake and Zoë Foster Blake
Australia’s golden couple, Hamish Blake and Zoë Foster Blake, brought their talents to the second season of Bluey. Hamish, crowned the 2023 Australian Father of the Year, and his wife, Zoë, a successful skincare founder, lent their voices to characters in the episode Hammerbarn.
In this hardware shop adventure, Hamish voiced a Labrador working as a Hammerbarn employee, while Zoë played a checkout dog poodle. Talk about a power couple!
Myf Warhurst
Australian radio announcer and television personality, Myf Warhurst lends her voice to a couple of characters, including Aunt Trixie and Indy’s mum.
Megan Washington
Australian musician and songwriter, Megan Washington has a reccuring guest role voicing a Blue Merle Australian Shepherd named Calypso, who is Bluey’s teacher.
Rose Byrne
The Bridesmaids star voiced Chilli’s older sister, Brandy in season three’s Onesies episode. We were all overcome with emotion when we learnt of Brandy’s fertility struggles and that she couldn’t have children.
Layne Beachley
Australian former professional surfer and seven-time world surfing champion, Layne Beachley voices a surfer ins season one’s The Beach episode.
Anthony Field from The Wiggles
Blue Wiggle, Anthony Field has provided a couple of voices for the hit show. The founding member of The Wiggles featured in season two’s Dance Mode episode, playing a post office employee who has to deal with Bluey’s dad, Bandit, when he refuses to stop dancing. He later lent his voice as Rusty’s dad, a Red Kelpie and army man.
Leigh Sales
Australian journalist, writer, illustrator, and author Leigh Sales voices Coco’s mum in season two’s Baby Race episode and again later that season, as an ice-cream lady in the Ice Cream episode.
Patrick Brammall
Colin from Account‘s star Patrick Brammall voices Uncle Rad in season two’s Double Babysitter episode.
Miranda Tapsell
Australian actress Miranda Tapsell voices Dougie’s mum in season three’s Turtleboy episode.
Carrie Bickmore
Radio host and television presenter, Carrie Bickmore provides the voice of the Terrier triplets’ mum in season three’s TV Shop episode.
Robert Irwin
The son of the late Steve Irwin lends his voice to Alfie, a toy store employee in season two’s The Quiet Game episode.
Mick Molloy
Australian comedian and media personality, Mick Molly voices Sparky (an Australian slang term for an electrician) in season three’s Tradies episode.
Adam Hills
Australian comedian Adam Hills voices a cricket commentator in season three’s Cubby episode.
Kate Miller-Heidke
Singer Kate Miller-Heidke voices Chilli’s mum in the Dragon epsiode of season three.
Darren Hanlon
Singer-songwriter, Darren Hanlon voices Alt Energy Dog in season three episode Sheep Dog.
International celebrity cameos in Bluey
Natalie Portman
Oscar-winning actress Natalie Portman lent her voice to season three’s Whale Watching episode where she can be heard narrating a whale documentary.
Eva Mendes
Hollywood actress Eva Mendes also brought her voice to season three of Bluey, playing a glamorous yoga instructor in the episode Born Yesterday.
According to Sam Moor, Bluey‘s producer, Eva Mendes is just one of many celebrity fans eager to make a cameo in the wildly popular series.
“We’ve been very lucky to attract the attention of a few celebs now and when we discover that they are a fan of the show, like Eva said her and her family were, we just take the plunge to reach out to them and ask if they would like to voice a cameo role. We were delighted when Eva agreed, and we thought this role would be perfect for her.”
Neil Finn
New Zealand musical icon Neil Finn voices a doctor in season three’s Exercise episode.
Lin-Manuel Miranda
Lin-Manuel Miranda, the mastermind behind smash-hit musicals Hamilton and In the Heights, brought his talents to season three of Bluey. He voiced a friendly horse named Major Tom in one of the episodes.
As a dad of two, Lin-Manuel shared that Bluey became a massive hit in his household, dominating their screen time during the pandemic.
While visiting Australia and Ludo Studio in Brisbane, where Bluey comes to life, Lin-Manuel expressed his deep affection for the show.
“It was really special, really kismet, that the show that got us through the pandemic and, really, the only show everyone in our family can agree on … is made here in Brisbane.”
