‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer’ and ‘Gossip Girl’ Actor Michelle Trachtenberg Dead at 39

FILE PHOTO: Actress Michelle Trachtenberg arrives to attend the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) fashion awards in New York June 7, 2010.  REUTERS/Lucas Jackson/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Actress Michelle Trachtenberg arrives to attend the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) fashion awards in New York June 7, 2010. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson/File Photo
Michelle Trachtenberg, an American actor known for her roles in the television series "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and "Gossip Girl", died on Wednesday, according to her public relations team.

“It is with great sadness to confirm that Michelle Trachtenberg has passed away. The family requests privacy for their loss. There are no further details at this time,” the statement said.

The cause of Trachtenberg’s death is not known.

FILE PHOTO: Actress Michelle Trachtenberg poses at the party for the launch of the Blackberry Torch in Los Angeles August 11, 2010. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni/File Photo

The actor was born on October 11, 1985, in New York City to Jewish immigrant parents.

As a child, Trachtenberg got her start in Hollywood when she was three years old in commercials and her television debut was in the Nickelodeon series “The Adventures of Pete & Pete” in 1994.

At 10 years of age, she landed her first title role in the 1996 movie “Harriet the Spy.”

FILE PHOTO: Actress Michelle Trachtenberg arrives for the annual White House Correspondents’ Association dinner in Washington April 25, 2015. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/File Photo

She had roles in several Nickelodeon productions leading up to her being cast in the cult classic “EuroTrip” in 2004 when she was in her early twenties.

Then came the roles that she is best known for, including the character Dawn Summers in the WB supernatural drama “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” in 2000 and as Georgina Sparks on the CW television series “Gossip Girl” in 2007.

FILE PHOTO: Actress Michelle Trachtenberg poses at the 4th annual Critics’ Choice Television Awards in Beverly Hills, California June 19, 2014. REUTERS/Danny Moloshok/File Photo

Some of her other roles include television films “Killing Kennedy”, “Sister Cities”, and the science fiction film “The Scribbler”.

Trachtenberg also appeared in music videos from emo-rock band Fall Out Boy for their song “This Ain’t a Scene, It’s an Arms Race”, and the Joaquin Phoenix-directed music video for “Tired of Being Sorry” by Ringside.

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