The Los Angeles County medical examiner has confirmed that Daveigh Chase, best known for her roles in Lilo & Stitch and The Ring, died of AIDS on June 16, 2026, at the age of 35. The report also listed chronic polysubstance use as a significant contributing condition. Her death was ruled as natural, occurring in a hospital.
Chase's father, John David Schwallier, previously told the New York Times that she died of complications from bacterial meningitis and a blood infection, adding that she had struggled with drug addiction and homelessness before her death. He also stated that he and Chase had not spoken since she was 19.
Chase began her career in the late 1990s, appearing in TV shows like Sabrina the Teenage Witch and ER, before landing iconic roles in Lilo & Stitch (2002) and The Ring (2002). She won an MTV Movie Award for Best Villain for her performance in The Ring.
Her former manager, John Ryan Jr., disputed claims made in a GoFundMe campaign set up by her alleged boyfriend, Roy Hernandez, stating that Chase's estate had sufficient funds for her cremation and that Hernandez had not informed her family until after her death.