'Lilo' voice actor bids adieu

Daveigh Chase, the actress who voiced the beloved character Lilo in Disney's Lilo & Stitch and terrified horror fans as Samara in The Ring, passed away on Tuesday in Los Angeles at the age of 35.

Meningitis and a blood infection caused her death, according to statements made by her boyfriend to TMZ. She had previously been hospitalised in Los Angeles earlier this month for malnutrition. Her father also confirmed her passing to the New York Times, revealing that she had been experiencing homelessness while living in Los Angeles with her boyfriend, and had faced struggles with substance abuse since the age of 13.

The actress secured her breakout role in 2002 as the voice of Lilo Pelekai, the spirited young Hawaiian girl in Lilo & Stitch. Her performance earned her an Annie Award for outstanding voice acting in an animated feature, leading her to reprise the role in various spin-offs, including Stitch! The Movie in 2003, Leroy & Stitch in 2006, and the Disney Channel animated series.

That same year, she showcased her versatility by bringing another major animated character to life, voicing Chihiro Ogino in the English-dubbed release of Hayao Miyazaki's acclaimed Japanese masterpiece Spirited Away.

Beyond her voice work, she made a massive impact on the horror genre by portraying Samara Morgan, the vengeful entity behind the cursed videotape in the 2002 smash hit The Ring. While the physical performance relied on multiple actors across the franchise—including Kelly Stables and contortionist Bonnie Morgan, who executed the famous television crawl—archival footage of her original performance was utilised for the later instalments The Ring Two in 2005 and Rings in 2017.

Her live-action portfolio also included portraying Samantha Darko, the younger sibling of Jake Gyllenhaal's character in the cult classic Donnie Darko, a role she later reprised as the lead in the 2009 sequel S. Darko. On television, she held a recurring role in the HBO drama Big Love and voiced the central character in the educational series Betsy's Kindergarten Adventures. Her final professional acting appearances occurred in 2016.