Chase’s boyfriend says the actress contracted meningitis and a blood infection.

*The Ring *and Lilo & Stitch star Daveigh Chase dies at 35

Chase's boyfriend says the actress contracted meningitis and a blood infection.

By Wesley Stenzel

Wesley Stenzel

Wesley Stenzel is a news writer at **. He began writing for EW in 2022.

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June 17, 2026 1:51 p.m. ET

Daveigh Chase in 2011. Credit:

Jason Merritt/Getty

- *Lilo & Stitch* actress Daveigh Chase died on Tuesday at age 35, TMZ reported.

- The *Ring* star died following complications from sepsis and a blood infection, her boyfriend told the outlet.

- Chase last appeared on screen in 2016.

Daveigh Chase, the former child actress who starred in projects like *The Ring* and *Lilo & Stitch*, has died.

The actress' boyfriend, Roy Hernandez, told TMZ that she died on Tuesday at age 35 after a bout of meningitis and a blood infection that caused septic issues. The outlet also reported that Chase was admitted to a Los Angeles hospital for malnutrition earlier this month.

Chase's father, John David Schwallier, confirmed to *The New York Times* that his daughter died from complications of bacterial meningitis and a blood infection. Schwallier said Chase had been homeless and living in Los Angeles with her boyfriend near the hospital where she died. "Him and her were destitute," Schwallier said.

Schwallier told the *Times* that he had been in contact with Hernandez and arrived at the hospital shortly before Chase died.

The actress had struggled with with drugs since she was 13, according to her father. He told the outlet that he hadn’t spoken with her since she was 19, which was around the time Chase had a falling-out with her mother. (Her parents divorced when she was a toddler.)

Hernandez previously established several GoFundMe campaigns for Chase amid her health struggles. "Her condition has become critical, and the doctors have told me she may not have much time left," he wrote. "All she ever wanted was a place where we could live together, feel safe, and be happy. Now, more than ever, I want to give her that sense of home and peace in her final days."

** has reached out to representatives for Chase for more information.

Chase in 'The Ring'.

Merrick Morton/Dreamworks

Born in Las Vegas in 1990 and raised in Albany, Ore., Chase made her screen debut in a 1998 episode of *Sabrina the Teenage Witch*. She also acted on episodes of shows like *ER*, *Charmed*, and *The Practice*.

She also played Jake Gyllenhaal's sister in 2001's *Donnie Darko*, and later reprised the role in the 2009 direct-to-video sequel *S. Darko*.

Chase in Los Angeles in 2012.

Todd Williamson/WireImage

Her breakthrough came in 2002 when she voiced Lilo Pelekai, the rambunctious young Hawaiian protagonist in *Lilo & Stitch*. That same year, she appeared in Gore Verbinski's American remake of *The Ring*, in which she played Samara Morgan, the girl haunting the cursed video tape at the center of the plot.

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Chase returned to voice Lilo in the 2003 direct-to-video sequel *Stitch! The Movie*, leading into Disney Channel's *Lilo & Stitch: The Series*, which ran for 65 episodes between 2003 and 2006. She returned again for 2006's *Leroy & Stitch*, which served as the finale for the show.

The actress was a series regular on the Fox sitcom *Oliver Beene*, which ran for two brief seasons from 2003 to 2004. Chase later portrayed Rhonda Volmer on HBO's *Big Love*, working as a series regular on the first two seasons and appearing on a recurring basis in seasons 3 and 5.

Chase in HBO's 'Big Love'.

She also provided the voice of Chihiro in the American dub of Hayao Miyazaki's *Spirited Away*, which was released in the United States in 2002. In 2007, Chase voiced Betsy in the PBS Kids animated series *Betsy's Kindergarten Adventures*.

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The actress appeared on episodes of *CSI: Crime Scene Investigation*, *Without a Trace*, *Touched By an Angel*, and *Family Law*, among other series.

Her final screen performances came in the 2016 films *Jack Goes Home *and *American Romance.*

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