Source: Entertainment Weekly

Jeff Garcia, the stand-up comedian who voiced Sheen Estévez on The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron, Boy Genius, has died.

Garcia’s son, comedian Jojo Garcia, announced that the actor died at 50 on Wednesday on Instagram.

“With a very heavy heart, I would like to inform everybody that my father, Jeff Garcia, has passed away,” Jojo wrote. “The talent my father possessed was truly one of a kind. From voice acting to stand up comedy, he shined with his quick wit, brash humor, and charm. He has made such an impact on people’s lives internationally, whether you grew up watching Jimmy Neutron, or shared a laugh with him at one of his shows. He was my hero… I idolized him.”

A cause of death was not immediately available. TMZ reported that Garcia had a brain aneurysm in the spring, and later experienced a stroke and a collapsed lung.

Debbie Derryberry, who voiced the titular boy genius on Jimmy Neutron, mourned her former costar on Instagram. “I’m devastated to find out that my dear friend Jeff Garcia, who also played Sheen on Jimmy Neutron has passed away,” the actress wrote. “We were all together just [a] few months ago at a convention. He was always the funniest man in the room. We’re gonna miss you Sheen.”

Born in 1975, Garcia began his career as a stand-up comedian in the early 1990s. After briefly appearing on episodes of Caroline in the City and Dangerous Minds and playing a small role in the 2000 comedy film 3 Strikes, Garcia found his breakout role in Sheen Estévez, the empty-headed, UltraLord-obsessed buddy of whiz kid Jimmy Neutron in the 2001 animated film Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius. The character’s name is a playful nod to the Sheen/Estévez acting dynasty composed of Martin Sheen, Charlie Sheen, and Emilio Estévez.

After receiving a nomination for Best Animated Feature in the category’s first year at the Oscars, Jimmy Neutron received a spinoff TV series on Nickelodeon, The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron, Boy Genius, which ran for 55 episodes between 2002 and 2006. Garcia voiced Sheen on every ep of the show, plus a number of specials and NickToons video games.

Garcia’s Sheen later received a Nickelodeon spinoff series, Planet Sheen, which ran for 26 episodes between 2010 and 2013. The actor also reteamed with Jimmy Neutron co-creator Steve Oedekerk for the 2006 animated movie Barnyard, in which he voiced Pip the Mouse. That film also received a TV spinoff, Back at the Barnyard, which saw Garcia reprise his role on all 52 eps of the series between 2007 and 2011.

The actor earned an Annie Award in 2004 for Outstanding Achievement for Voice Acting in a Television Production for voicing Sheen in the Jimmy Neutron ep “Nightmare in Retroville.”

Garcia also lent his voice to various characters in the Happy Feet and Rio animated duologies. In Happy Feet, which won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature in 2007, the actor portrayed Rinaldo, an Adelie penguin who hangs out with Robin Williams’ Ramón. He reprised the role in 2011’s Happy Feet Two.

In 2011’s Rio, Garcia voiced the bumbling smuggler henchman Tipa as well as a bat named Bat. In the film’s 2014 sequel, Rio 2, the actor played a spoonbill and a blue macaw named Peri.

In one of his only live-action projects, Garcia played Freddy Lopez on 20 episodes of the sitcom Mr. Box Office in the early 2010s. He also voiced a dog on the beach in 2010’s Marmaduke, and appeared on episodes of shows like ChalkZone, Clone High, Ozzy & Drix, and Ben 10: Ultimate Alien.

Garcia spent the last decade of his career focusing on stand-up. His final credited live-action performance came with the 2024 movie Holy Cash, and his final credited voice performance can be heard in the new video game Nicktoons & The Dice of Destiny, in which he played Sheen one final time.

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