Michelle Trachtenberg left out of Oscars' in memoriam tribute

USA Today

03-03-2025

Michelle Trachtenberg left out of Oscars' in memoriam tribute
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Andrew Garfield, Halle Berry arrive on Oscars red carpet
Stars like Andrew Garfield, Halle Berry, Margaret Qualley, Lily-Rose Depp and Michelle Yeoh arrive to the Oscars 2025 red carpet.
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The Oscars' in memoriam tribute, a segment honoring notable names in the film community who died over the last year, had several notable omissions Sunday night.
While director David Lynch and legendary British actress Maggie Smith were both honored, "Ice Princess" star Michelle Trachtenberg, who died Thursday at 39, was absent.
Trachtenberg's death shocked fans and saddened co-stars, who remembered the child star-turned-teen show favorite as big-hearted and hard-working in social media tributes following her death. While her rise to fame was fueled in part by television appearances, Trachtenberg was a movie actress as well, starring alongside Rosie O'Donnell in "Harriet The Spy" and late actor Matthew Perry in "17 Again." (Perry was honored at last year's show.)
"Romeo and Juliet" lead Olivia Hussey was also omitted from the tribute, as was "90210" star Shannen Doherty, both of whom died in 2024. Tony Todd, who starred in "Candyman" and the "Final Destination" franchise, was also excluded.
While the in memorium section of the broadcast strung together a chunk of passages from the previous year to the soundtrack of Mozart's "Requiem in D Minor," also known as "Lacrimosa," elsewhere in the night there were individual tributes to some of Hollywood's greats.
Gene Hackman, the Oscar-winning actor who was found dead alongside wife Betsy Arakawa on Wednesday, was honored with his own segment headed up by co-star Morgan Freeman.
"This week, our community lost a giant and I lost a dear friend, Gene Hackman," Freeman said.
Hackman and Freeman worked together on Clint Eastwood's 1992 film "Unforgiven" and again in 2000 in Stephen Hopkins' "Under Suspicion."
"Like everyone who ever shared a scene with him," Freeman said, "I learned he was a generous performer whose gifts elevated everyone's work."
Quincy Jones, a longtime producer whose musical success seeped into several of Hollywood's most celebrated films, was also given a separate tribute. Queen Latifah performed a classic from "The Wiz" to honor Jones.
The performance was introduced by Whoopi Goldberg and Oprah Winfrey, who both starred in "The Color Purple," which Jones scored.
Latifah, a friend and collaborator throughout Jones' life, was featured on several tracks of his 1995 album "Q's Jook Joint."
Contributing: Taijuan Moorman, Bryan Alexander, David Oliver