Michelle Trachtenberg, finest identified for her work on Buffy The Vampire Slayer
and Gossip Woman, has died at 39, leaving buddies and former co-stars mourning her premature demise and sharing heartbreaking tributes on-line. Police confirmed that Trachtenberg was discovered deceased in her New York Metropolis condo by her mom on Wednesday, February 26. The reason for demise has not but been revealed, although it’s identified she lately underwent a liver transplant.
Trachtenberg’s profession started with commercials earlier than showing on Legislation & Order and Clarissa Explains It All whereas she was nonetheless a toddler. She later gained recognition in Nickelodeon’s The Adventures of Pete & Pete, All My Kids, and the 1996 movie Harriet the Spy. In 2000, she joined Buffy the Vampire Slayer as Daybreak Summers, Buffy’s youthful sister, a job she performed till the present’s conclusion in 2003. From 2008 to 2012, she portrayed the memorable Georgina Sparks on Gossip Woman, reprising the position for the 2022-2023 revival, which marked her closing on-screen look.
Former co-stars and buddies have taken to social media and issued statements to honor Trachtenberg’s impression, each on and off-screen. Kim Cattrall, who labored with Trachtenberg on Ice Princess, paid homage to the late actress on Instagram and X, expressing her disappointment and calling Trachtenberg “candy” and “gifted.”
Buffy the Vampire Slayer co-star James Marsters remembered Trachtenberg as a “lovely soul,” “fiercely clever,” and “howlingly humorous.” Alyson Hannigan, a fellow Buffy alum, shared images and recalled Trachtenberg’s “loving power” on set. Emma Caulfield described the loss as like dropping a “little sister” from their “Buffy household.” David Boreanaz and Gossip Woman co-star Ed Westwick additionally provided their condolences by means of Instagram tales.
Melissa Gilbert, who appeared with Trachtenberg in A Vacation for Love, expressed disappointment for Trachtenberg’s household. Melissa Joan Hart, who labored with Trachtenberg on Clarissa Explains It All, shared a nostalgic Instagram put up, remembering their early collaboration. SNL‘s Kenan Thompson, a fellow former Nickelodeon little one actor, additionally posted a tribute.
‘Harriet the Spy’ Group Remembers Michelle Trachtenberg
Largely thought of her breakout position, Harriet the Spy starred a younger Trachtenberg alongside Rosie O’Donnell, Vanessa Lee Chester, and Gregory Smith. In an announcement to US Weekly, O’Donnell mourned the actress, sharing:
“Heartbreaking. I liked her very a lot. She struggled the previous few years. I want I may have helped.”
J. Smith-Cameron, who starred as Trachtenberg’s mom within the movie, remembered Trachtenberg as an “excited” and “charming little woman.” In an announcement shared with PEOPLE, she spoke fondly of Trachtenberg. Noting that Harriet the Spy was Trachtenberg’s first movie, she shared:
“Her pure ebullient nature was ratcheted up into giddiness as she tried to learn to deal with all that got here with that. She was a really charming little woman. Years later we discovered one another on social media and linked briefly. She was all the time very heat towards me. I really feel very shocked and unsettled to listen to of her passing.”
Harriet the Spy director Bronwen Hughes additionally spoke of Trachtenberg’s on-set power, telling the Hollywood Reporter:
“Michelle was like a lightning bolt of a casting discovery. She had hearth, she had spark, she had fact, and she or he had Harriet’s conviction, like her sense of self. Nobody else got here within the room like that. So she had that performing gene that you could’t actually educate. It is innate, which isn’t one thing you discover fairly often.” He added: “She was every thing that Harriet wanted to be, and she or he by no means had a false observe, and also you could not actually take your eyes off her. That was magical casting for us.”
Supply: Varied