Michelle Trachtenberg, ‘Gossip Girl’ and ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer’ Star, Dies at 39

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Actress Michelle Trachtenberg, who made her start as a child actor in notable roles such as the lead character in “Harriet the Spy,” later achieving fame on shows like “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” “Gossip Girl,” and the comedy “EuroTrip,” has tragically passed away at the age of 39.

The New York Post was first to report the news of her death.

Trachtenberg, born in New York to Jewish parents who had immigrated, grew up speaking Russian fluently because her mother was from Russia, making Russian the language she used to converse with her grandparents. This was revealed during a radio interview in 2005.

Back in the day, I made my first steps into the gaming world by snagging a role on TV’s gritty streets. It happened when I appeared on an episode of Law & Order in 1991. Later, I moved onto more family-friendly shows like Clarissa Explains it All on Nickelodeon, where I shared screen time with the talented Melissa Joan Hart. After that, I joined the cast of The Adventures of Pete & Pete for a 14-episode stint, which was quite an adventure! Funny enough, my future Buffy co-star Sarah Michelle Gellar also had a role on All My Children around the same time. My big break as a young actor came when I landed the lead in Harriet the Spy for Nickelodeon, starring alongside veterans like Rosie O’Donnell, Eartha Kitt, and J. Smith-Cameron. At that time, I was only 10 years old!

After some time, the family relocated to Brooklyn. There, she was brought up alongside her elder sister named Irene. At the age of twelve, as her career began to flourish due to her involvement with Nickelodeon, Trachtenberg decided to shift to Los Angeles in pursuit of more professional opportunities. However, she mentioned that for a while, she maintained a presence on both coasts.

She previously mentioned that her life in Brooklyn felt somewhat secluded compared to later on the West Coast. A significant change for her was transitioning from an area where entertainment was noticeable yet not omnipresent, to Los Angeles, where it seems like everyone is involved in show business.

During the late ’90s, she continued to receive work and secured a regular role on the TV show “Meego” in 1997, alongside Bronson Pinchot, Ed Begley Jr., Jonathan Lipnicki, and Will Estes. After that, she made appearances in movies such as “Inspector Gadget” and “Can’t Be Heaven.

In a captivating turn of events, the TV screen brought to life the casting of our actress as Dawn Summers, opposite Gellar, in the cherished and iconic series Buffy. Summers, the younger sister of the main character, made her debut in the inaugural episode of the show’s fifth season, and she graced every subsequent episode throughout Buffy’s final three seasons.

Trachtenberg shared that he’d known Sarah from our time working together on “All My Children.” We worked together for approximately two and a half years, and even after she moved to Hollywood and started her career there, we managed to stay in touch over the years. When it came to joining “Buffy,” Trachtenberg told BBC, he had always been a big fan of the show and tried to find ways to appear as a guest star. It just so happened that he received a call about the opportunity. Sarah, being supportive as always, was aware of this call and our friendship played a role in him getting cast on “Buffy.

Beyond Gellar, Trachtenberg has also spoken about having close relationships with contemporaries such as Scarlett Johansson, Thora Birch, and Taryn Manning. They all entered the industry around the same time and frequently crossed paths at auditions. In an interview, she once mentioned, “Thora, Taryn, and I have been trying to find a movie we can work on together because we genuinely like each other.” She also added, “Scarlett Johansson, Thora Birch, and I all hail from New York. We may not have been best friends, but we’d always see each other at auditions. Now, whenever I meet the girls, there’s a sense of familiarity and comfort.

As a passionate gamer, I found solace in knowledge pursuit, even amidst my hectic acting schedule. While many of my peers were engrossed in school, I remained steadfast on my academic journey. “I need a tutor on set at all times. Education holds a special place in my heart. If acting doesn’t work out for me, I want to have a strong foundation to fall back on. I was brought up believing that education is not just a necessity, but also an enriching experience, and this is the philosophy I live by,” I shared in an interview. “One day, I aspire to attend university, majoring in the technical aspects of filmmaking. I already know how to play games on screen, now I want to learn how to create them.

Following Buffy’s conclusion in 2003, Trachtenberg continued to be active in front of the camera, featuring in the popular comedy movie “EuroTrip.” This film also starred Jacob Pitts, Scott Mechlowicz, Kristin Kreuk, and Matt Damon (who made a special appearance). The movie was written and directed by Jeff Schaffer, Alec Berg, and David Mandel, who were previously associated with “Seinfeld.

Trachtenberg transitioned to mature roles, appearing in Gregg Araki’s “Mysterious Skin” alongside Brady Corbet and Joseph Gordon-Levitt, as well as the popular and critically praised HBO show “Six Feet Under.” Other notable works on her resume include…

Previously, she starred in 28 episodes as the cunning socialite Georgina Sparks on Gossip Girl, a popular TV series. More recently, she reprised this role for the HBO Max reboot, marking her last acting credit in Hollywood, three years ago.

Over the past few months, Trachtenberg’s Instagram posts featuring her appearing thin have raised eyebrows among her admirers.

More to come.

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2025-02-26 21:24