The actor, best known for her role as Samara Morgan in The Ring, has passed away at the age of 35. This announcement sent ripples through Hollywood and left fans that grew up watching her great performances, in shock. According to multiple sources, she passed away after complications from meningitis and an infection in the bloodstream that gave sepsis and organ failure. Her death ends a career that began at an early age, making some of the most recognizable characters of the early 2000s.
Cause of Death
According to sources which quote her boyfriend Roy Hernandez, she was diagnosed with both meningitis and many serious infections on the blood, that resulted in both septic shock and subsequently shut down her bodily systems completely. She had been hospitalized in the beginning of the month for malnourishment, but afterwards her health continued to decline.
Many fans and fellow entertainers have taken to social media to express their sorrow, especially in remembering how talented she was and how her work had a tremendous impact on both animation and horror film at that time period.
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A Breakthrough Year That Defined a Generation
Daveigh Chase was born in Las Vegas, Nevada, on July 24, 1990, and got her start in the entertainment business as a child actor. As she appeared on television and did voice work, she received widespread recognition. However, the year that truly defined her career was in 2002.
That year she voiced the fun-loving and headstrong character Lilo Pelekai for Disney’s Lilo & Stitch. This role endeared her to young audiences and received significant praise from critics and was instrumental in the success of the animated film, which has become one of Disney’s most popular modern-day classics, having been performed in sequels and in a television show based on Lilo & Stitch.
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Hollywood Mourns the Loss of a Former Child Star
That same year she starred in the unbelievably different role of Samara Morgan, the horrifying and terrifying child antagonist in the blockbuster horror movie, The Ring. This performance would go down in history as one of the most memorable horror movie performances of the decade, and she would receive an MTV Movie Award for Best Villain because of this performance.
Although Chase is recognized best for her iconic performances in Lilo & Stitch and The Ring, her body of work encompasses so much more than just those two films. She voiced Chihiro in the English version of the Academy Award-winning animated film, Spirited Away, thereby exposing countless American audiences to the critically acclaimed Japanese film.
The cult classic film, Donnie Darko, featured her as the character Samantha Darko and she eventually reprised this role in its sequel, S. Darko. She has also gained acclaim for playing Rhonda in HBO’s Big Love, where she appeared in several seasons. In addition to these accomplishments, she has been a guest on programs like ER, Charmed, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and Sabrina the Teenage Witch.
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A Career That Bitterly Ended
Chase has had a successful career up until the mid 2010s however, she has gradually stepped away from the public eye. Those who watch the industry have said that by 2016, Chase had completely left the Hollywood scene. Following her death there have been many stories of hard times including an unstable lifestyle and multiple health issues associated with the last several years of her life.
Although Chase still has a great deal of loyal followers, her time away from the spotlight has forced many to ask “What happened to one of the most successful child actors of our generation?”.
Fans Pay Tribute to an Unforgettable Talent
After news of her passing, fans of horror and animated classics shared emotional tributes on social media. Many remembered her incredible ability as an actress, as she infused Lilo with the warmth and innocence of a child while simultaneously creating one of cinema’s scariest characters in Samara.
While her life was taken from us at an early age, Daveigh Chase leaves behind a legacy that will continue to affect people all over the world for years to come. Her work in animation, television, and film has provided audiences with many of the most iconic pop-culture experiences of the early 21st century.
