Daveigh Chase, the voice behind Lilo in Disney's "Lilo & Stitch" and Chihiro in "Spirited Away," died on June 16 in a Los Angeles hospital. She was 35. The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner's office confirmed her cause of death was AIDS, with "chronic polysubstance use" noted as another significant condition.
Chase's father, John Schwallier, told The California Post that the cause of death was not surprising given her lifestyle. He stated that she had been living on Skid Row in Los Angeles for over a decade and struggling with addiction. "It is what it is and that's something you sometimes have to expect with the lifestyle she was living," Schwallier said.
Schwallier has not seen Chase in person since she was about six years old but maintained phone contact as she grew up. He expressed a desire to obtain some of her cremated remains, stating he felt an "empty feeling inside for not being with her all these years."
Chase, who also starred in the horror film "The Ring," last appeared in the 2016 movie "American Romance" before stepping away from the public eye. Friends and her manager had reportedly attempted to help her off the streets and into rehabilitation, but she refused.
A GoFundMe campaign was initiated by someone identified as her boyfriend, Roy Hernandez, who claimed she struggled with safety and happiness in downtown Los Angeles. However, Chase's manager of over a decade disputed the claim, stating that neither friends nor family had heard of Hernandez.