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Michelle Trachtenberg, who rose to fame as a child star in the 1990s and 2000s, has died aged 39, the New York Police Department told CBS News, the BBC’s US partner.<\/p>\n
The American actress was best known for playing Buffy the Vampire Slayer’s younger sister Dawn Summers, and later took on the role of manipulative socialite Georgina Sparks in Gossip Girl – which ran from 2007 to 2012 – as an adult.<\/p>\n
Her death is not being treated as suspicious, police said. <\/p>\n
Trachtenberg made her film debut in Harriet the Spy in 1996, and she appeared in several Nickelodeon productions. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n
BBC News has reached out to Trachtenberg’s representatives for comment. <\/p>\n
Police in Manhattan said they responded to an emergency call on Wednesday morning, and they found Trachtenberg “unconscious and unresponsive”. She was “pronounced deceased at the scene”.<\/p>\n
“Criminality is not suspected. The medical examiner will determine the cause of death. The investigation remains ongoing,” the NYPD said in a statement. <\/p>\n
Trachtenberg got her start in acting at three years old on the Nickelodeon television series The Adventures of Pete & Pete. <\/p>\n
In the early 2000s, she was nominated for several acting awards – including a Daytime Emmy Award – for her role in Buffy the Vampire Slayer. <\/p>\n
She also starred in films including EuroTrip, Ice Princess, Killing Kennedy, and Sister Cities.<\/p>\n
Trachtenberg first appeared in Gossip Girl in 2008. She returned to the role for two episodes of the second season of HBO Max’s reboot in 2023. <\/p>\n
Her last major acting role was in 2021 as the host of a true-crime docuseries Meet, Marry, Murder, which appeared on digital streamer Tubi. <\/p>\n
In 2021, Trachtenberg accused Buffy the Vampire Slayer creator Joss Whedon of inappropriate behaviour on set after her co-star Charisma Carpenter said she had been left traumatised due to the treatment she received from Whedon. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n