Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Gossip Girl actress Michelle Trachtenberg has died aged 39, according to The Post.
Trachtenberg’s death is not being investigated as suspicious, police sources told the publication.
ABC News reported that her mother found Trachtenberg dead on Wednesday in her New York City apartment, near Columbus Circle. Trachtenberg reportedly recently underwent a liver transplant and may have been experiencing complications, according to ABC News.
Trachtenberg is believed to have died of natural causes and no foul play is suspected, ABC News added, with an autopsy set to determine the cause and manner of death.
Speaking to USA Today, a representative for Trachtenberg confirmed her death “with great sadness.” “The family requests privacy for their loss. There are no further details at this time.”
“Criminality is not suspected,” the NYPD said in a statement issued to the BBC. “The medical examiner will determine the cause of death. The investigation remains ongoing.”
At the age of nine, Trachtenberg appeared in 1990s Nickelodeon show The Adventures of Pete and Pete before making her film debut in 1996’s Harriet the Spy.
Trachtenberg famously played Dawn Summers, the younger sister of Sarah Michelle Geller’s Buffy, in teen drama Buffy the Vampire Slayer from 2000 until the show ended in 2003, and Jenny in 2004 American teen sex comedy EuroTrip. In 2005 she played Casey Carlyle in teen sports comedy-drama film Ice Princess.
More recently, Trachtenberg played Georgina Sparks in teen drama television series Gossip Girl, which ran from 2007 to 2012, and returned to the role for the second season of HBO Max’s standalone sequel series in 2023. Her last major acting role was in 2021 as the host of Tubi true-crime docuseries Meet, Marry, Murder.
In 2021, Trachtenberg accused Buffy the Vampire Slayer creator Joss Whedon of inappropriate behaviour on set after her co-star Charisma Carpenter said she had been left traumatised due to the treatment she received from Whedon. Whedon later denied the claims.
Photo by Bobby Bank/Getty Images.
Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.
