Daveigh Chase, the voice behind Lilo from the hit animated film and series “Lilo & Stitch,” has died at age 35 of sepsis.
The actress died in a hospital in Los Angeles after developing bacterial meningitis, according to her father, John David Schwallier.
Months before her death, the New York Post reported that she was seen living on Skid Row last year, homeless and extremely thin.
Chase had been battling drug addiction since she was 13 years old and was estranged from her family.
Rise to fame in animation, Hollywood films
Born on July 24, 1990, Chase got her acting breakthrough as Samantha Darko in the movie Donnie Darko.
She became famous for her titular role in the “Lilo & Stitch” film when she was only 11 years old.
She later continued voicing Lilo in various television adaptations and video game titles.
Additionally, Chase provided the English voice for Chihiro from Studio Ghibli’s “Spirited Away,” which won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature.
Then she gained more acclaim in the 2002 horror movie “The Ring” as Samara Morgan, the terrifying long-haired spirit who crawls out of the television.
The role won her the “Best Villain” MTV Movie Award in 2003.
Chase had been acting since she was four years old, until she retired in 2015.
“She was not very Hollywood,” her long-time manager, John Ryan, said in a report by the BBC.
“She’d rather eat at Bob’s Big Boy and go home with the cats. She loved acting but wasn’t into the fame scene.”
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‘Finding Lilo’: Friends and family search for Daveigh
The New York Post, in an exclusive, revealed that Chase had been struggling severely during her last days.
Her friends and family had also been searching for her, even hiring a private investigator to find the former actress.
It turned out that she was living on Skid Row in Los Angeles, where the largest population of people without homes in the United States resides.
She was shown on video, looking frail and barely conscious inside what seemed to be a tent or trailer.
Ryan said he managed to contact Chase by phone and made arrangements to bring her in for treatment, but by the time he arrived in the area, she could no longer be found.
He added that he and Chase’s stepsister, Gaia Brown, had hoped to help her recover in Los Angeles before transferring her to a rehabilitation centre in Costa Rica.
“We were so close to finding her,” he said to 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.”
Ryan revealed that he was also developing a documentary about the search, titled “Finding Lilo,” and that several major studios had shown interest in the project.
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Boyfriend sets up GoFundMe for Chase’s final days
Her alleged boyfriend, Roy Hernandez, created an online fundraising campaign to help cover her medical expenses, TMZ reported.
In the campaign, Hernandez described some of the challenges Chase faced throughout her life.
“After a difficult childhood and a painful falling out with her family, Daveigh was bullied and struggled to find safety and happiness in downtown LA,” Hernandez wrote.
“Together, we found moments of happiness and hope. All she ever wanted was a place where we could live together, feel safe, and be happy. Now, more than ever, I want to give her that sense of home and peace in her final days.”
The GoFundMe collected about US$1,400 out of its US$5,500 goal.
However, Ryan slammed the page as “improper” and called out Hernandez.
“Apparently, a man claiming to be her ‘boyfriend’ that none of us friends or family has heard or set up a GoFundMe on ‘her and her family’s behalf’.
I can confirm Daveigh has a trust account set up at SAG to cover all costs,” Ryan told The Post.
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