If you’ve ever queued up for a quick play match in 2026 and cackled at Cassidy’s snarky one-liner after a surprise team wipe, you’ve probably wondered who voices Cassidy in Overwatch 2. I’ve been maining Cassidy since the character’s name change, so I’ve heard every single one of his lines hundreds of times by now, and I’ve always been curious about the person behind that iconic southern drawl. The cowboy hero’s gruff, charming delivery has made him a fan favorite for years, even as the game has rolled out dozens of balance patches and new hero updates since its launch. We dug through official Blizzard announcements, recent actor interviews, and 2026 voice line patch notes to bring you all the details you’re looking for, plus little-known facts you won’t find on random fan wikis.
Who Voices Cassidy in Overwatch 2 in 2026?
As of 2026, Matthew Mercer is still the official voice actor for Cassidy, and there are no public plans for a recast any time soon. Some fans speculated a potential cast change after 2025’s major Deadlock Gang lore expansion, but Blizzard confirmed in a March 2026 blog post that Mercer is signed on to voice the character through at least the end of 2027. Mercer first took over the role when the character was renamed from McCree to Cassidy in 2021, and he has voiced every iteration of the hero since, including all seasonal event lines, battle pass quips, and story cutscenes. He’s a veteran voice actor with credits across dozens of popular games and animated shows, including Critical Role, Resident Evil, and Final Fantasy, so his performance experience shows in every line he delivers for Cassidy.
What Makes Matthew Mercer's Cassidy Performance Stand Out?
One of the biggest reasons Cassidy feels so authentic as a character is that Mercer doesn’t just read lines off a script—he actively collaborates with the writing team to shape the character’s personality. He ad-libs a surprising number of fan-favorite lines, and the devs often keep his unscripted jokes in the final game because they fit Cassidy’s laidback, sarcastic vibe so well. For example, the viral 2026 Lunar New Year line where he jokes about stealing dumplings from Tracer was a total off-the-cuff ad-lib that the team loved so much they added it to the event line-up within a week of recording. Some of the most popular ad-libbed Cassidy lines added in 2026 updates include:
Mercer works closely with the Overwatch 2 lore team to make sure every line fits Cassidy's backstory as a former Deadlock Gang member turned Overwatch agent. He’s said in recent 2026 interviews that he makes a point of reading every new lore drop before recording sessions, so he can adjust his delivery to match where the character is in his arc. For example, his lines for the 2025 Deadlock Gang story arc are noticeably more serious and tense than his usual silly quips, to reflect the character’s complicated history with his former crew.
Behind the Scenes of Recording Cassidy Lines for 2026 Content
Recording for Overwatch 2 lines looks a lot different in 2026 than it did in the early days of the first Overwatch game. Mercer records most of his casual quip lines remotely from his home studio these days, which cuts down on travel time and lets him fit recording sessions around his other work commitments. The only time he goes into Blizzard’s official studio is for major story cutscenes that require motion capture, or for group banter lines where he needs to interact with other voice actors in real time. Recording sessions for seasonal event content usually happen 3 to 4 months before the event goes live, so the lines you heard in the 2026 Summer Games event were recorded as early as March 2026. When they record interactive banter lines, like Cassidy’s back and forth jokes with Ashe, the actors join a shared Zoom call while recording to make the conversation sound natural, instead of recording their lines separately and pasting them together later. If you want to watch a 10 minute clip of Mercer recording 2026 Cassidy lines, you can check the official Blizzard Overwatch 2 news hub for the behind-the-scenes feature they dropped in May 2026. A lot of fans don’t realize that Mercer also does his own motion capture work for Cassidy, even the physical stunts. He’s mentioned in recent interviews that he wears a real cowboy hat during motion capture sessions to get into character, even though the mo-cap suit doesn’t pick up the hat’s movement at all. He says it just helps him get into Cassidy’s headspace better, and the dev team says it shows in the final performance.
Upcoming Cassidy Voice Line Updates Planned for Late 2026
Blizzard announced at the 2026 BlizzCon that they’re adding 12 new Cassidy lines as part of the upcoming Deadlock Gang lore event dropping in November 2026. Some of these lines will explore Cassidy's complicated history with Ashe and the rest of the Deadlock Gang, so fans of the character's backstory have a lot to look forward to. The lines will also tie into the new story mode mission that lets players play through Cassidy’s final heist with the Deadlock Gang before he left to join Overwatch. There are also new unlockable voice lines for players who reach Grandmaster rank playing Cassidy in competitive play during season 7 of 2026. These lines are specifically tailored to high-level play, with jokes about countering dive comps and landing perfect Deadeye shots. The devs also mentioned they’re adding new accessibility options that let you toggle between the original higher energy Cassidy line deliveries and a more mellow, lower volume option for players who find the loud one-liners distracting during tense competitive matches. Mercer already recorded all of these lines back in July 2026, so they’re already finalized and ready to go live with the November update.
Whether you’re a casual player who just loves Cassidy’s silly one-liners or a diehard lore fan who’s been following his arc for years, knowing who voices Cassidy in Overwatch 2 adds a whole new layer of appreciation for the character. Matthew Mercer’s dedication to the role, from ad-libbing fan favorite lines to showing up for motion capture in a cowboy hat, is a big part of why Cassidy remains one of the most popular heroes in the game as of 2026. If you want to catch more of his work, you can follow his official social media accounts for behind-the-scenes clips from upcoming recording sessions, or keep an eye on the Overwatch 2 patch notes for new Cassidy lines dropping later this year.