Former child star Daveigh Chase died Tuesday at the age of 35. Image courtesy of UPI
Daveigh Chase — an actress known for her work in Lilo & Stitch, The Ring and Big Love — has died at the age of 35.
Her father, John David Schwallier, told The New York Times Chase died Tuesday in a Los Angeles hospital of complications of bacterial meningitis and a blood infection after years of battling an addiction to drugs.
The California Post spoke with John Ryan, Chase’s manager of more than a decade, who said he and Chase’s stepsister, Gaia Brown, hired a private investigator about a year ago to find and help her after a video was posted online showing her emaciated-looking and living in squalor on Skid Row.
“We were so close to finding her,” Ryan told The Post, “Daveigh was the sweetest and brightest light in Hollywood. I can’t believe this is real. Her legacy and work will live on forever.”
TMZ also confirmed the sad news of the actress’ death with Chase’s boyfriend, Ray Hernandez.
Her other credits include Donnie Darko, Beethoven’s 5th, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, ER and Mercy.
Notable deaths of 2026
Peabo BrysonPeabo Bryson performs on the “Men of Soul Tour” at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Fla., on November 14, 2010. Bryson, a singer-songwriter whose hits included the Disney classics “Beauty and the Beast” and “A Whole New World,” died at the age of 75 on June 2. Photo by Michael Bush/UPI | License Photo
