The 2025 Oscars In Memoriam section did not pay tribute to Michelle Trachtenberg days after her death at age 39.
While Trachtenberg was not in montage, which played during the Sunday, March 2, ceremony held at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, she was listed as one of the names that Hollywood has lost in 2024-2025 on the official Academy website. (Shannen Doherty was also absent from the ceremony’s montage and only listed online.)
Days before the event, The Hollywood Reporter reported that Oscars executive producers are not responsible for who ends up in the tribute — instead the responsibility is bestowed upon an executive committee representing all 19 Academy branches. The group must compile a four-minute montage, which isn’t enough time to include everyone.
“We have to recognize all the art forms that go into the creation of motion pictures,” former Academy executive director Bruce Davis, who helped run past committees, said. “And if you include all the people, the steam goes out of the boiler very quickly.”
The 2025 Oscars red carpet has been rolled out, and stars arrived in many winning styles on Hollywood’s biggest night. When the 97th Academy Awards kicked off on Sunday, March 2, outside the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, Dancing With the Stars judge Julianne Hough was among the first on the crimson rug. She hit […]
A source close to the outlet claimed that previous Oscar winners and Governors Award honorees have the best chance of being featured, followed by recipients of the Academy’s Scientific and Technical Awards. After that, a nominee would be considered. (Trachtenberg was not an Oscar nominee in her career.)
Us Weekly confirmed on Wednesday, February 26, that Trachtenberg was found unconscious inside her apartment in New York City’s Midtown West. Police sources told Us that the incident was not believed to be suspicious.
“It is with great sadness to confirm that Michelle Trachtenberg has passed away,” a rep for Trachtenberg told Us in a statement. “The family requests privacy for their loss. There are no further details at this time.”
The city medical examiner’s office told the New York Post on Thursday, February 27, that Trachtenberg’s death was officially listed as “undetermined” because her family objected to an autopsy.
Michelle Trachtenberg’s mother, Lana, discovered the late actress’s body in her New York City apartment on Wednesday morning, February 26, according to ABC News. Lana discovered her daughter unconscious at around 8 a.m. in the former Buffy the Vampire Slayer star’s Midtown West apartment. She was 39. Michelle’s cause of death was not immediately apparent, […]
Multiple sources told Us that Trachtenberg had a liver transplant before her death. It is unclear whether the organ transplant played a role in her death.
Trachtenberg skyrocketed to stardom in the 1996 movie Harriet the Spy, which she starred in alongside Rosie O’Donnell. In a statement to Us on Wednesday, O’Donnell, 61, called Trachtenberg’s death “heartbreaking,” adding, “I loved her very much. She struggled the last few years. I wish I could have helped.”
Trachtenberg went on to join the cast of Buffy the Vampire Slayer as Sarah Michelle Gellar’s onscreen sister, Dawn. Gellar, 47, mourned the loss of Trachtenberg in an emotional social media tribute on Thursday.
“Michelle, listen to me. Listen. I love you. I will always love you,’” Gellar wrote via Instagram, quoting a scene between her and Trachtenberg’s characters. She then quoted Dawn’s famous line from the musical episode: “‘The hardest thing in this world, is to live in it. I will be brave. I will live… for you.’ 💔💔💔🗝️.’”
Michelle Trachtenberg’s rep confirmed her death on Wednesday, February 26, shortly after news broke about her passing. “It is with great sadness to confirm that Michelle Trachtenberg has passed away,” the actress’ rep told Us Weekly in a statement. “The family requests privacy for their loss. There are no further details at this time.” The […]
Trachtenberg also made appearances as a guest star on Gossip Girl as Georgina Sparks, as well as films including 17 Again and Ice Princess. The actress reprised her role as Georgina in 2022 and 2023 episodes of the short-lived Gossip Girl revival, which premiered in 2021.
In the wake of Trachtenberg’s passing, a source exclusively reflected to Us on how much “people loved her.”
“You’d hang out with her, and it wasn’t like she was crazily famous, but those who loved her were obsessed and would come up and talk,” an insider told Us, while a separate source added, “She was a lovely human being and a good friend. She remembered birthdays, was kind, and if she saw something on Instagram, she would reach out and say something nice.”
