Tragic Details About Michelle Trachtenberg's Life

Child stars have a tendency to endure tragedy from a young age given their exposure to the entertainment industry at such a vulnerable point in their lives. There have been many successful stars who got their start as children, like Jodie Foster or Neil Patrick Harris, but others seem to fall out of the public eye gradually, like Michelle Trachtenberg, who has faced more than her fair share of difficulty.

Born on October 11, 1985, Trachtenberg was just 3 years old when she began acting in commercials. The young actor later landed guest roles on "Clarissa Explains It All" and "All My Children," as well as a recurring spot on "The Adventures of Pete & Pete," before becoming better known to the world as "Harriet the Spy" in 1996. In an October 2021 interview with Entertainment Tonight, Trachtenberg reminisced about her time filming the movie, saying, "I turned 10 years old on the first day of principal photography of 'Harriet the Spy.' ... There was a lot required of me."

The cast of "Harriet the Spy" has changed dramatically since the movie premiered, including Trachtenberg, who went on to become known for her roles in "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," "EuroTrip," and "Gossip Girl." However, after a series of unfortunate events throughout Trachtenberg's three-decade-long career, including bullying, the death of a close friend, a handful of injuries, and her sudden return to headlines regarding her appearance, the actor has clearly been through a lot.

When Michelle Trachtenberg joined the cast of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" in Season 5, fans were quick to dislike her character Dawn Summers. Although the introduction of Buffy's sister may have initially excited some viewers of the show, her immaturity and whininess made Trachtenberg's character a source of annoyance for others throughout the three years she spent in the role.

Even the actor herself wasn't the biggest fan of working on "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," as she explained to Entertainment Weekly in 2004. "I found TV to be rather stifling, especially 'Buffy.' Three years as one character — where they're not changing the character and your abilities aren't being tested or challenged — gets very repetitive," she said.

Trachtenberg later acknowledged the backlash she had faced from fans of the show in a 2017 interview with Entertainment Weekly. While she said she understood why viewers saw Dawn as annoying, she defended her character and the writers' decision to portray her this way. "I rarely get the, 'Oh she ruined the show.' I do get a lot of, 'Oh she was so whiny!' Hi, were you a teenager? Oh, you were docile, sitting in the corner, doe-eyed and happy to be there? No. There's a reason why teenagers have a stigma, and that is what Joss [Whedon, the show's creator] wrote," Trachtenberg explained.

Michelle Trachtenberg has tragically missed several important opportunities, including nearly being cast as Bella in "Twilight" and her show with The CW never getting picked up, either of which could have totally transformed her career. According to a 2010 Vulture article, Stephanie Savage and Josh Schwartz, two producers originally tied to "Gossip Girl," had apparently been signed on to work on a series with Trachtenberg, in which she would have played a criminology student with a troubled past. Unfortunately, while we would have loved to see Trachtenberg go from playing the undeniably evil Georgina Sparks to this perhaps equally dark character, the show's pilot (like countless other pilots) simply wasn't picked up in the end.

Luckily, 2010 was still a successful year for the actor because she landed a role in the movie "Cop Out," continued her work on the show "Mercy," and lent her voice to a few "DC Showcase" shorts. Trachtenberg also continued her television work the following year, with appearances on "Love Bites" and "Weeds."

She also continued her work on "Gossip Girl" despite the disappointment she probably felt about not getting her own show. In speaking with E! News in 2010, the actor spoke about her character's return to the show after a short hiatus, saying, "What we love about Georgina is that she can't help but be evil, even when she pretends to be good."

As Michelle Trachtenberg's fame dipped slightly during her 2017 hiatus from Hollywood projects, she also was plunged into grief as one of her close friends died. Nick Ackerman had been the bassist of the New York City-based alternative-rock band, The Virgins, from 2006 until 2013, when they broke up. Four years later, in March 2017, news broke that Ackerman had died, leading friends to post tributes mourning the loss of the musician, including Trachtenberg.

A few days after the bass player's death, the actor shared a photo of the two of them on Instagram, alongside a caption that read, "[Ackerman] was a unique soul, a true friend and someone who was always there for me. He inspired the path my life took in so many ways. Nicky, I spoke to you a few weeks ago, we had plans to get together and laugh about the silly things in our lives. I will forever miss this opportunity to say to you I love you, one more time." While few details were made public about Ackerman's cause of death or his relationship to Trachtenberg, there's no denying that the "Ice Princess" star was deeply impacted by the loss of her friend.

With the birth of the #MeToo movement, several actors felt empowered and supported enough to share the inappropriate behavior higher-ups subjected them to while on set. Among those publicly outed was Joss Whedon, the creator and producer behind "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," who reportedly subjected his cast and crew to a toxic environment while filming. Sarah Michelle Gellar, who played the titular character, spoke out on Instagram in February 2021, sharing that she no longer wished to be associated with the show's creator and that she "stand[s] with all survivors of abuse."

That same day, Michelle Trachtenberg re-shared Gellar's statement in her own Instagram post and added a caption that detailed her own experience with Whedon. "This must. Be known. As a teenager. With his not appropriate behavior....very. Not. Appropriate. So now. People know. What Joss. Did. The last. Comment I will make on this. Was. There was a rule. Saying. He's not allowed in a room alone with Michelle again," Trachtenberg's cryptic post read. While she has yet to address the accusations against Whedon publicly or make any more of her own, it would appear that she, along with many of the women on the set of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," endured unpleasant experiences while filming.

It had been a decade between when "Gossip Girl" ended and the time the actor reprised her role in the reboot, leaving fans to wonder what had happened to Michelle Trachtenberg. Her return as Georgina Sparks may have had some noting that she had aged a little (it had been 10 years, after all, and Trachtenberg was in her late 30s now), but it wasn't until the actor began posting selfies to Instagram in late 2023 that fans became concerned about her appearance.

Some comments on the "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" star's social media noted how thin she looked, while others remarked, "Michelle u look sick. R u ok?" and, "Michelle, have you gone to a doctor? It looks like you have jaundice?" In response to the overwhelming criticism of her looks, Trachtenberg fired back to one commenter, "Explain to me how I look sick. Did you lose a calendar and not realize I'm not 14. I'm 38. How sad for you to leave such a comment."

In mid-January of 2024, Trachtenberg posted another smiling selfie on Instagram, alongside the caption, "Fun fact. This is my face. Not malnutrition no problems. Why do you have you hate? Get a calendar." While some of her followers flooded her posts with support, others have continued to analyze and critique her appearance based on her photos, despite Trachtenberg's insistence that she hasn't had plastic surgery, nor is she unwell.