Kaylee Hottle, an actor who appeared in two โGodzillaโ movies, died at 18 years old in a single-car collision on July 21 in Maryland, according to police and her high school.
โIt is with profound sadness that we share the heartbreaking news that one of our TSD seniors, Kaylee Hottle, tragically passed away,โ the Texas School for the Deaf said in a statement Tuesday.
โOur hearts are with Kayleeโs family, friends, classmates, and everyone who knew and loved her during this incredibly difficult time,โ the statement added.
The Texas native played Jia in the 2021 blockbuster โGodzilla vs. Kong,โ and again in โGodzilla x Kong: The New Empireโ in 2024. She spoke to the Houston Chronicle in 2024 about being a role model as an actor who is deaf.
โIโd like to see more deaf young actresses get motivated when they see me on screen and hopefully theyโll have a chance in Hollywood as well,โ she said. โBut I just hope that theyโll be inspired, especially deaf people, to be inspired to want to be an actor or actress when they see me on screen.โ
Hottle was a passenger in a 1995 Honda Accord being driven by a 19-year-old man when the vehicle traveled off the right side of a two-lane roadway in Ijamsville, Md., and struck a culvert, according to a news release from the Frederick County Sheriffโs Office. Deputies with the sheriffโs office responded to the call at 2:52 a.m. ET on July 21.
Two passengers were in the vehicle at the time of the collision. The driver and another passenger, who were not identified by police, were transported to a local hospital with injuries not believed to be life-threatening, according to the news release.
The second passenger was identified as Hottle, who was transported to an area trauma center and later pronounced dead.
A preliminary investigation found that โexcessive speedโ is believed to have contributed to the crash, according to the news release. The collision remains under investigation.
Hottleโs father, Joshua Hottle, posted a video on Facebook in which he announced his daughterโs death using American Sign Language. He said that he was flying from his home in Texas to Maryland. It is not clear why his daughter was in Maryland at the time of the crash.
โI am taking a flight that I never would like to take,โ he said, according to NBC News affiliate WBAL in Baltimore.
