Michelle Trachtenberg Dies: ‘Buffy The Vampire Slayer,’ ‘EuroTrip’ & ‘Gossip Girl’ Actress Was 39

Michelle Trachtenberg, an actress beloved by millenials for roles in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, EuroTrip, Gossip Girl and more, has died at the age of 39, according to multiple reports from the likes of the New York Post and ABC News.

No cause of death was immediately disclosed.

Born in New York City on October 11, 1985, Trachtenberg was a lifelong actor who her television debut in commercials at just three years old before landing a recurring role as Lily Montgomery on the long-running soap opera All My Children. She gained further recognition while starring in Nickelodeon’s The Adventures of Pete & Pete before landing her breakout role as Harriet M. Welsch in the 1996 Paramount film Harriet the Spy, based on the classic children’s novel.

Trachtenberg joined Buffy the Vampire Slayer in the WB fantasy series’ fifth season as Dawn Summers, the mystical younger sister to Sarah Michelle Gellar’s Buffy, in the year 2000, seeing the character become integral in later seasons.

Subsequently, the actress garnered further notice with roles in the raunchy 2004 cult comedy EuroTrip and the Disney sports drama Ice Princess, where she played a bookish teen discovering her passion for figure skating. One of her most memorable roles came in 2008 when she joined Gossip Girl as Georgina Sparks, the manipulative and unpredictable troublemaker who frequently threw the lives of the Upper East Side elite into chaos. Originally intended as a short-term role, her character became a fan favorite, leading to multiple returns throughout the show’s six-season run.

Trachtenberg later continued to work steadily in television, with guest appearances on the likes of House, Weeds, NCIS: Los Angeles, and Sleepy Hollow. Additionally, she lent her voice to animated projects, including Robot Chicken and Superman: Unbound, in which she voiced Supergirl.

We’ll share details on any service potentially planned for Trachtenberg as they emerge.