Disney’s “Lilo & Stitch” voice actress Daveigh Chase dies at 35

Hollywood actress Daveigh Elizabeth Chase, best known for voicing Lilo in Disney’s animated film Lilo & Stitch, died at the age of 35.

Her manager, John Ryan Jr., confirmed the death to BBC News.

Ryan said Chase was admitted to a Los Angeles hospital on Wednesday with severe malnutrition. He added that she later died from sepsis after developing meningitis.

“She was the greatest. She loved cats. She worked with cat rescues with us. She was very to herself,” Ryan, who had been her friend and manager for 15 years, said. “She was not very Hollywood. 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,” he added.

Chase was born on July 24, 1990, and began acting at the age of four. She landed her first Hollywood role at seven and retired from full‑time acting in 2015.

She is best remembered for her role in the horror film The Ring and for voicing Lilo in Disney’s Lilo & Stitch. In 2003, she received an Annie Award for her performance and continued to voice the character in subsequent franchise releases.

In June 2026, Chase was admitted to a Los Angeles hospital for treatment of severe malnutrition after a period of extreme weight loss. During her stay, her condition worsened when she was diagnosed with meningitis and multiple severe bloodstream infections. Doctors said she did not have much time left to live.