Rabat – Actress Kaylee Hottle, best known for her role in “Godzilla vs. Kong,” has died at the age of 18 following a tragic car accident.
Hottle was a passenger in a 1995 Honda Accord when the driver lost control of the vehicle. The car left the roadway before striking a culvert.
Her father, Joshua Hottle, announced that Hottle’s heart stopped while she was being transported to the hospital by ambulance.
“I am taking a flight that I never would like to take,” he stated in a 23-minute Facebook Live streaming American Sign Language when the death was confirmed, adding that he was flying to Maryland to claim her body.
Born on May 1, 2007, in Atlanta, Georgia, Kaylee Hottle came from a multigenerational Deaf family and was fluent in American Sign Language (ASL).
She began her career in the entertainment industry at just nine years old, appearing in national commercials, including one for Glide.
Playing Jia in “Godzilla vs. Kong” and “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire,” Hottle portrayed a deaf teenager who communicated with Kong through sign language.
Her performance brought greater visibility to deaf representation on screen. She earned a “Saturn Award nomination” for reprising Jia in the 2024 sequel.
The Texas School for the Deaf, where she was a senior, shared condolences with her family, friends, and classmates, showing how much she meant to her school community.
Kaylee Hottle will be remembered not only for her talent on screen but for the doors she opened. She was a rising star who made countless deaf viewers feel seen.
