Cloris Leachman was an acclaimed American actress whose prolific career included a number of memorable performances as a voice actor in anime and animated features. Born in Des Moines, Iowa, in 1926, she built a legendary career in film and television, winning an Academy Award, nine Primetime Emmy Awards, and a Daytime Emmy Award, making her one of the most awarded performers in Emmy history. This extensive experience in both comedic and dramatic roles informed her distinctive and powerful voice work.

Leachman's most prominent role in anime came in 2003 when she was cast as the voice of Captain Dola in the Disney-produced English-language dub of the Studio Ghibli film Castle in the Sky. Originally released in 1986, the film was re-dubbed by Disney for a new audience, and Leachman was among several well-known actors hired for the project. Her character, the larger-than-life and cantankerous leader of a family of air pirates, was a memorable figure. Leachman herself described the role as "who I am, extended to the Nth degree". Her performance as Dola was met with nearly unanimous praise and is considered a highlight of the English-language version of the film.

Following her work on Castle in the Sky, Leachman continued her collaboration with Studio Ghibli. She provided the voice of Yoshie, one of the elderly women at the nursing home, in the 2009 English-language dub of the studio's film Ponyo. She also voiced the character Kayo in the same film, according to some sources.

Beyond her work with Studio Ghibli, Leachman had a wide-ranging voice career in animation. She was the voice of Gran in the popular DreamWorks Animation films The Croods (2013) and its sequel The Croods: A New Age (2020). Her other notable voice roles include Mrs. Tensedge in The Iron Giant (1999) and various characters in the animated series The Simpsons, Phineas and Ferb (where she voiced Heinz Doofenshmirtz's mother), and Elena of Avalor. Her extensive voice filmography also includes films such as My Little Pony: The Movie (1986), A Troll in Central Park (1994), and Beavis and Butt-Head Do America (1996).

Cloris Leachman passed away in 2021 at the age of 94. Her legacy as a voice actor is marked by her ability to imbue animated characters, particularly strong and unconventional women like Captain Dola, with the same fearless and dynamic energy that defined her seven-decade career in live-action performance.