Gossip Girl actor died: Family does not allow autopsy, agency binds hands

According to ABC News, the New York City Medical Examiner's Office respected the decision of the late actor's family, did not conduct an autopsy, so it was not possible to determine the cause of Michelle Trachtenberg's death.

Currently, the cause and manner of her death are announced as "unknown". Previously, after the results of the initial investigation, the police said there were no signs of a crime related to the Hollywood actor's departure. According to police sources, Michelle underwent liver transplant surgery last year and may have had complications.

Michelle Trachtenberg was found "unresponsive" by her mother at 8 a.m. on Wednesday at her apartment in One Columbus Place, a 51-story luxury apartment complex in Manhattan's Central Park South neighborhood. When police and paramedics arrived, they determined Michelle had died.

According to People, Michelle's friends revealed that she was sick months ago and the actress told them about how she struggled with health issues. The source said Michelle was "mentally depressed" when faced with health problems that she did not share publicly. She once made fans worried when she looked thin and pale in photos posted on Instagram for a year now.

Michelle seems to have lost weight, her hair has thinned out, and her eyes have turned yellow. One of her neighbors at the Manhattan luxury apartment, Ariana Rodriguez, also shared with Us Weekly that the actress has become slim and looks increasingly different over the past few months.

Michelle's Harriet the Spy co-star Rosie O'Donnell, 62, told E! News: "It's heartbreaking. I love her very much. She has struggled for the past few years. I wish I could help her." Photographer Amanda de Cadenet told Nypost that she recently Faceted with Michelle and found out you were in the hospital.

People living in the same building are now shocked by Michelle Trachtenberg's sudden passing. Neighbor Ariana Rodriguez said Michelle looks thin but she always appears happy and warmly greets everyone. Ariana described the actor as a wonderful, humble neighbor who was always "smiling at everyone in the hallway". She added: "I am very sad that I will no longer be able to see her in this building. She always greets me."

Another neighbor, Rafael Williams, said: "Michelle always seemed happy. I never noticed anything unusual in her. I don't know her, but she always says hello in the elevator. I was shocked when I heard that she had died."

Neighbors also revealed that Michelle Trachtenberg sometimes accompanies her boyfriend - talent agent and producer Jay Cohen. The two are often seen tangerines wrapped together. The actress and Jay - who has two adult stepchildren - have been dating since 2020. Jay has not yet shared anything about his girlfriend's passing.

Princess Eugenie expressed her mourning for her longtime friend, Michelle Trachtenberg, after the actress died in New York. "Goodbye special friend. Love and miss you very much. Thank you for so many memories full of laughter and joy. You are very thoughtful, generous and extremely funny," the British princess wrote on Instagram on February 27.

"What I like the most is listening to you order, always meticulous so that we get exactly what we want. I am thinking of you in heaven, of the optimism and joy that you have brought to so many people," the granddaughter of the late Queen Elizabeth II added.

Michelle Trachtenberg was born in 1985 in New York, acted in movies from the age of three and played a child detective in Harriet the Spy (1996). From 2008 to 2012, she starred in 28 episodes of the hit TV series Gossip Girl, playing the rich, drug-addicted Georgina Sparks. She also starred in films such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer, EuroTrip, Ice Princess and 17 Again. Michelle has been dating talent agent and producer Jay Cohen since 2020 and just celebrated her love on Valentine's Day 2025.