Deaf Actress Kaylee Hottle, 18, Dies in Maryland Car Crash
Kaylee Hottle, known for her role as Jia in the recent Godzilla films, died in a car accident in Maryland at age 18.
Kaylee Hottle, an 18-year-old actress from Atlanta who appeared as Jia in the recent "Godzilla vs. Kong" and its sequel, died early Thursday after a serious car crash in Maryland. Her father, Joshua Hottle, told reporters that he learned of the accident while in Texas and flew to Maryland to retrieve her body. He said officials informed him that her heart stopped on the way to the hospital.
Hottle, who came from a multi-generational deaf family, began acting in commercials as a child, including a public-service announcement for the video-messaging app Glide, a platform popular among the deaf community. In addition to her Godzilla roles, she had a guest appearance on the "Magnum P.I." reboot, playing a character named Joon in a season-four episode.
"I had to fly from Texas to claim her body," Hottle said in American Sign Language during a live-streamed statement.
Her death was confirmed by family members and local authorities.