Former “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” and “Eurotrip” actress Michelle Trachtenberg passed away on Wednesday. She was just 39.
ABC News says no official cause of death has been disclosed as yet, but the actress recently underwent a liver transplant.
She was reportedly found unconscious and unresponsive by her mother Wednesday in her New York City apartment. Criminality is not suspected.
Trachtenberg was a child star appearing on various shows like “Law & Order” and “All My Children” before breaking through in 1994 on on Nickelodeon series “The Adventures of Pete & Pete”.
In 1996 she starred in the Nickelodeon coming-of-age comedy film “Harriet the Spy” and in 1999 played Penny in the live-action “Inspector Gadget” film. She then landed the key role of Dawn Summers, little sister to Sarah Michelle Gellar’s Buffy Summers, in the final three seasons of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer”.
On film she also starred in “Eurotrip” in 2004 and Gregg Araki’s acclaimed “Mysterious Skin,” the Disney dramedy “Ice Princess” in 2005, the 2006 remake of “Black Christmas,” the 2009 comedy “17 Again”, 2019’s “Cop Out,” 2013’s “Sexy Evil Genius” and 2014’s “The Scribbler”.
On TV she had a recurring role on the hit series “Gossip Girl,” a regular role on “Mercy,” and roles on “Robot Chicken,” “Weeds,” “NCIS: LA,” “Sleepy Hollow,” “Six Feet Under” and more. She also hosted/narrated several series including “Truth or Scare” and “Meet, Marry, Murder”.
In 2008, Trachtenberg began appearing on the hit drama Gossip Girl, where she played Georgina Sparks in a recurring role throughout the series. She continued to work throughout Hollywood in recent years, even hosting a documentary series titled Meet, Marry, Murder.
