Kaylee Hottle, the deaf actress widely recognized for playing Jia in the “Godzilla” film franchise, has d!ed at the age of 18 following a tragic car accident
Her father, Joshua Hottle, confirmed that she was involved in a fatal crash early Tuesday in Maryland. Speaking during an emotional live stream in American Sign Language (ASL), he revealed that he had to travel from Texas to identify and claim his daughter’s body.
Joshua explained that he was first informed Kaylee had been seriously injured in the accident. A short time later, officials contacted him again with the heartbreaking news that her heart had stopped while she was being taken to the hospital.
Born in Atlanta, Georgia, Kaylee came from a family with several generations of deaf relatives. She began acting as a child, appearing in commercials, including a public service announcement for the video messaging app Glide, which is popular within the deaf and hard-of-hearing community.
She rose to international fame in 2021 after portraying Jia in “Godzilla vs. Kong,” a young girl who communicates with King Kong through sign language. She returned to the role in the 2024 sequel, “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire.”
Beyond the Godzilla films, Kaylee also appeared in the reboot of “Magnum P.I.,” where she played the character Joon in a fourth-season episode.
She was 18 years old.
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