Former child star, Sophie Nyweide, best known for portraying Michelle Williams’ on-screen daughter in the 2009 film Mammoth, has died at age 24.
The actress, who appeared in seven movies before turning 10, passed away on April 14 as confirmed by her family in an online obituary.
‘Sophie was a kind and trusting girl. Often this left her open to being taken advantage of by others. She wrote and drew voraciously, and much of this art depicts the depth she had, and it also represents the pain she suffered,’ her loved ones wrote. They continued: ‘Many of her writings and artwork are roadmaps of her struggles and traumas. Even with those roadmaps, diagnoses and her own revelations, those closest to her, plus therapists, law enforcement officers and others who tried to help her, are heartbroken their efforts couldn’t save her from her fate.’
Her loved ones went on to reveal that Nyweide ‘self-medicated to deal with all the trauma and shame she held inside’ and that ‘resulted in her death.’
‘She repeatedly said she would “handle it” on her own and was compelled to reject the treatment that might possibly have saved her life,’ they detailed. Nyweide’s exact cause of cause of death is unknown, at this time.
The young star’s obituary highlighted her lifelong passion for acting, which her family said she ‘dreamed (more like demanded) to do from a young age, ‘without ever knowing her mother was an actor.’
‘She seemed happiest on a movie set, becoming someone else. It was a safe place for her and she relish from the casts and crews who nourished her talent and her well being,’ her loved ones explained.
Nyweide booked her first acting gig in the 2006 movie, Bella, and proceeded to get a parts in episodes of Law & Order, And Then Came Love, Margot at the Wedding and New York City Serenade.
Her other credits include Shadows & Lies, Mistakes Were Made, Born Again and What Would You Do.
Following her performance in an An Invisible Sign (2010), alongside Jessica Alba, film critic, Jeannette Catsoulis, predicted Nyweide ‘should have a glowing future.’
