Any actor's dream is to see their name up in lights - but when that stardom is cut tragically
short, their fans are robbed of the promise of what might have been.
And sadly, Hollywood has seen plenty of actors come and go long before their time.
Best known for playing Mel Gibson's youngest daughter in the Revolutionary War epic The
Patriot, Skye McCole Bartusiak died on July 19th, 2014.
She was 21.
According to CNN, Bartusiak was found by her boyfriend sitting up in her bed in their Houston
apartment.
Her mother, Helen, stated that paramedics tended to her for 45 minutes, but were unable
to restart her heart.
She told the publication:
"We lost our girl.
She was a kind and really beautiful girl."
Her mother also stated that Bartusiak had been suffering from epileptic seizures in
the days leading up to her death - and believed that had been the cause.
She told CNN:
"We think she had a seizure and choked and nobody was there."
However, according to a report by the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences, Bartusiak's
cause of death was listed as an accidental overdose - from the combined toxic effects
of hydrocodone and difluoroethane with carisoprodol.
On September 30th, 1955, James Dean stopped by Blackwells Corner Grocery in Lost Hills,
California, to buy a Coke and fill up the tank of his car.
A short while later, college student Donald Turnupseed veered into Dean's lane, causing
a head-on collision that killed the Hollywood icon.
The Rebel Without a Cause star died instantly at the scene from a broken neck, numerous
broken bones and severe lacerations over his body.
Dean had just wrapped the filming of Giant the week of his death, a role that earned
him a posthumous Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor.
His passenger in the vehicle survived and was rushed to the hospital with a fractured
hip and jaw.
Dean was just 24 years old when he died.
On March 16th 2009, Tony award-winning actress Natasha Richardson fell and hit her head while
taking beginner skiing lessons at the Mont Tremblant ski resort in Quebec.
According to ABC News, paramedics arrived on the scene - where Richardson joked about
the fall, refused to be taken to the hospital, and walked back to her room.
Two days later, she died of an epidural hematoma due to a blunt impact to the head.
She was 45.
Liam Neeson, Richardson's husband at the time, released a statement after her death.
It read:
"Liam Neeson, his sons, and the entire family are shocked and devastated by the tragic death
of their beloved Natasha.
They are profoundly grateful for the support, love, and prayers of everyone, and ask for
privacy during this very difficult time."
During a 2014 interview with 60 Minutes, Neeson revealed that he still has trouble accepting
her death - but that he had also made a pact with his wife to pull the plug if either ever
became vegetative.
"So when I saw her and saw all these tubes and stuff, that was my immediate thought,
was, okay, these tubes have to go."
He also stated she had donated three of her organs, and felt she would be happy to know
that she was keeping three other people alive.
"It's terrific.
And I think she'd be very thrilled and pleased by that, too."
Rising star Nelsan Ellis died in 2017 at the age of 39, after complications with heart
failure.
In a statement, HBO said:
"We were extremely saddened to hear of the passing of Nelsan Ellis.
Nelsan was a longtime member of the HBO family whose groundbreaking portrayal of Lafayette
will be remembered fondly within the overall legacy of True Blood.
Nelsan will be dearly missed by his fans and all of us at HBO."
After his passing, the Juilliard-trained actor's family released a statement that provided
details about his untimely death.
The statement read:
"Nelsan has suffered with drug and alcohol abuse for years.
After many stints in rehab, Nelsan attempted to withdraw from alcohol on his own."
According to his father, during his withdrawal from alcohol he had begun suffering from a
blood infection, which caused his kidneys to shut down and his heart to fail.
The family stated that Ellis was ashamed of his addiction, and so was often reluctant
to talk about it.
Nonetheless, they wanted to make his struggles public to serve as a cautionary tale for others.
The family added:
"Nelsan was a gentle, generous, and kind soul.
He was a father, a son, a grandson, a brother, a nephew, and a great friend to those that
were lucky enough to know him."
Bursting onto the scene in two back-to-back films by legendary director Hal Hartley, Adrienne
Shelly's performances in The Unbelievable Truth and Trust made her an indie darling.
However, her love of the medium pulled her to work behind the camera instead, and Shelly
wrote and directed her first feature film in 1996: the low budget comedy Sudden Manhattan.
Sadly, her life was cut short on November 1st 2006, when she was found dead in her Greenwich
Village office.
She was 40 years old.
Although it was initially believed that Shelly had taken her own life, a 19-year-old construction
worker was eventually charged in connection to her death.
An investigator said at the time:
"He admits to hitting her, believes he had killed her, and wanted to fake her suicide."
Shelly's last directorial effort, Waitress, premiered at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival
three months after her death, and was met with rave reviews by critics.
"We look at death from a selfish side, like, you know that guy died.
Oh, that's so sad.
Why is it sad?
He's away from all this bad stuff that's here on earth."
Widely regarded as one of the greatest rappers of all time, many people forget that Tupac
Shakur was also building a substantial Hollywood film career when he died.
Garnering his first lead role in the 1992 crime drama Juice, Shakur went on to star
alongside Janet Jackson in Poetic Justice, and played the villain Birdie in 1994's Above
The Rim.
Unfortunately, the iconic rapper's dramatic potential was never truly explored, because,
on September 7th 1996, he was shot multiple times in Las Vegas - and died six days later
at Southern Nevada University Medical Center.
He was 25.
The director of Poetic Justice, John Singleton, envisioned Shakur being the Robert DeNiro
to his Martin Scorsese.
In 2013, he told Essence:
"We were going to grow together."
Best known for her role as reporter Jennifer Dugan in Spider-Man 3, British actress Lucy
Gordon was found dead in her Paris apartment in 2009, having taken her own life.
She was 28.
Her father, Richard Gordon, said at the time:
"She's always loved being on stage and in front of the camera, and she has kept all
her naturalness and charm all the way through.
She has been the most beautiful daughter.
We are obviously devastated."
Gordon had reportedly left two notes in her apartment and was described by neighbors as
being deeply affected by the recent death of a friend.
Her father told The Daily Mail:
"Her death has come completely out of the blue and the entire family is devastated.
[...] We have loved her so much throughout her life.
[...] Lucy was a lovely, generous and unselfish person who always gave so much thought to
other people and put them before herself."
On July 6th 2019, Disney Channel star Cameron Boyce died at his home, after suffering a
seizure in his sleep.
In a statement, a spokesperson for the Boyce family said:
"It is with a profoundly heavy heart that we report that this morning we lost Cameron.
[...] The world is now undoubtedly without one of its brightest lights, but his spirit
will live on through the kindness and compassion of all who knew and loved him."
His family also revealed to E! News that Boyce had suffered from epilepsy.
They continued:
"We are still trying to navigate our way through this extremely heart-wrenching time, and continue
to ask for privacy so that the family and all who knew and loved him can grieve his
loss and make arrangements for his funeral - which in and of itself, is agonizing."
Already an established Disney star, Boyce's career was poised to go mainstream, with roles
in HBO's Mrs. Fletcher and the sprawling music industry drama Paradise City.
He was just 20 years old when he died.
On August 9th 2008, legendary comedian Bernie Mac died due to complications from pneumonia
in his hometown of Chicago.
He was 50 years old.
Mary Ann Grossett, Mac's sister-in-law, revealed that the Original Kings of Comedy star suffered
from an inflammatory disease that affects multiple organs in the body.
She told People Magazine:
"He had sarcoidosis but it was in remission.
But because he had it, his immune system was compromised.
He was on a new medication that suppresses the immune system, and that's where the pneumonia
came from."
She also revealed that Mac was in ICU during his entire stay in the hospital.
She said:
"They tried to resuscitate him two times.
One time he came back for about an hour.
Then he went into cardiac arrest the second time."
A few weeks after his death, more than 6,000 people gathered at the House of Hope church
in Chicago to remember and pay tribute to the iconic funny-man.
Among those in attendance were Steve Harvey, Cedric the Entertainer, and D.L.
Hughley.
A condolences letter written by Barack Obama was read at the service.
Beloved television and film actor John Ritter died at a Burbank hospital in 2003, after
falling ill on the set during filming of the first season of ABC's 8 Simple Rules for Dating
My Teenage Daughter.
Whilst rehearsing, Ritter complained of nausea, weakness, and chest pain.
Later that day, he died of an undiagnosed heart ailment called aortic dissection.
He was 54 years old.
Star of the iconic '70s sitcom Three's Company, the Emmy award-winning actor experienced severe
nausea and vomiting during set rehearsals on 8 Simple Rules and was rushed to Providence
St. Joseph Medical Center.
During an appearance on People Now, Ritter's son, actor Jason Ritter, revealed the life
lesson his father had taught him about stardom and fame.
Apparently, John had told him:
"It can't ever really take the place of true friends and family and things like that, because
it's an idea of you as opposed to really, truly you."
With her breakthrough role in 1995's cult classic Clueless, Brittany Murphy was a star
on the rise.
She was active throughout the decade in a number of different movies and even a Broadway
debut, then transitioned to stardom in the 2000s with roles in films such as 8 Mile and
Sin City.
At the age of 32, her future looked bright - but on December 20th 2009, emergency responders
fielded a medical request at the actress' home.
She was later pronounced dead at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, having gone into cardiac arrest.
Even more shocking than the news of Murphy's passing was The Los Angeles County coroner
ruling that Murphy's death was accidental, caused by a combination of pneumonia, an iron
deficiency, and, quote, "multiple drug intoxication."
The full autopsy report, obtained by CNN, stated that multiple antibiotics and cold
medicines were found in Murphy's system, which the coroner suggested was a pattern of use
in order to fight a cold or other respiratory infection.
Roughly three months after Murphy's death, her husband Simon Monjack was found dead in
the same house.
His autopsy results showed he died in a similar way to Murphy - of acute pneumonia and severe
anemia.
With roles in a number of '90s shows and movies, including The NeverEnding Story II: The Next
Chapter, Ladybugs, and the popular sci-fi series SeaQuest DSV, Jonathan Brandis quickly
cemented himself as the teen heartthrob of the mid-'90s.
By 2003, his career had petered out a little - but he was hoping for a career comeback
in 2002's Hart's War.
Unfortunately, most of his scenes were cut from the film.
A year later, on November 11th 2003, Brandis was found in his Los Angeles apartment - after
an apparent attempt at taking his own life.
He died the next day.
Brandis' death was later officially ruled a suicide, but he didn't leave a note.
Paul Peterson is president of A Minor Consideration, a foundation that offers support to young
actors.
In the wake of Brandis' death, Peterson said:
"Speculations as to the underlying cause of this tragedy are exactly that: speculations.
It serves no purpose to leap to conclusions for none of us will really know what led Jonathan
to his decision to take his life."
If you or someone you know is having suicidal thoughts, please call the National Suicide
Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or text HOME to the Crisis Text Line at 741741.