- Daveigh Chase died at 35 from sepsis following complications from meningitis
- She was hospitalized for malnourishment before her death, confirmed by her manager
- Chase was best known for playing Samara Morgan in the horror film The Ring
American actor Daveigh Chase, known for her iconic role as the long-haired ghost who crawls out of the television in The Ring, died from sepsis, her longtime manager John Ryan Jr. confirmed to BBC News on Wednesday. She was 35.
Ryan said that Chase had been admitted to hospital for malnourishment before her death.
Chase died on Tuesday after developing complications from meningitis, which later escalated into a bloodstream infection and ultimately sepsis.
"She was the greatest. She loved cats. She worked with cat rescues with us. She was very much to herself," said Ryan, her friend and manager of 15 years, adding that Chase would often retreat to her home in Las Vegas for years at a time and turn down big studio films to do independent projects.
"She was not very Hollywood," he said. "She'd rather eat at Bob's Big Boy and go home with the cats. She loved acting but wasn't into the fame scene."
Claim to fame
Chase's breakthrough role was Samara Morgan, the long-haired ghost who crawls out of the television in the horror film The Ring — an American remake of the Japanese classic about a videotape that causes people to die after they watch it.
She earned a 2003 MTV Movie Award for Best Villain for her spooky, demon-like character.
Chase said she had fun playing such an evil character.
"It is not your typical character. Usually they are looking for a happy-go-lucky kid, but Samara was a pretty interesting character to play. I just kind of took my own voice and put this freaky twist on it," she told the Los Angeles Times in 2002.
The same year, she voiced the Elvis-adoring Hawaiian girl Lilo in the animated hit Lilo & Stitch. The part earned her an Annie Award for Best Voice Acting in an Animated Feature Production, and she continued to voice the character in later spin-offs.
She also appeared in TV dramas Charmed, ER and Touched by an Angel. Chase also had a 32-episode stint in the HBO polygamy drama Big Love, playing child bride Rhonda Volmer.
