On February 26, actress Michelle Trachtenberg was pronounced dead at the age of 39. It’s a shocking piece of news, especially for fans who grew up alongside Michelle watching her in her many TV and movies roles. And looking back, Michelle Trachtenberg has a lot of iconic roles. She first started acting when she was only three years old and she appeared in the Nickelodeon show Pete & Pete, and most recently reprised her Gossip Girl role of Georgina Sparks for the series reboot on Max. That’s an entire lifetime of acting work, so she leaves behind lots of roles for fans to remember her by.
Michelle played Georgina Sparks on the original Gossip Girl series from 2008 to 2012, and she practically instantly became a TV villain fans loved to hate. But Michelle totally embraced that hate and the darker side of her character. Back in 2009, she told Seventeen, “It’s kind of easy to be evil when you’re saying evil things. It’s definitely a lot more fun than playing the good girl. I love the reaction you get. I never understood why some actors don’t want to play villains or evil characters.”
It’s incredibly sad that we won’t get to see Michelle play more of those kinds of interesting characters. While we remember her life and career, here are Michelle Trachtenberg’s most iconic roles.
Michelle Trachtenberg’s Most Iconic Roles
Michelle Trachtenberg In Harriet The Spy (1996)
Michelle’s first movie role was the titular character in Harriet The Spy, which she starred in alongside Rosie O’Donnell and J. Smith Cameron.
Michelle Trachtenberg In Inspector Gadget (1999)
Most people will probably say Inspector Gadget is best known for all his quirky tech. But real ones know the most iconic part of this movie is his niece Penny, played by Michelle.
Michelle Trachtenberg In Buffy The Vampire Slayer (2000-2003)
When we remember Michelle Trachtenberg’s absolute most iconic roles, it’s probably a toss-up between Georgina Sparks and Dawn Summers, Buffy’s little sister.
Michelle Trachtenberg In EuroTrip (2004)
She entered a more grown-up phase of her career playing Jenny in EuroTrip, and somehow made a 2000s-era joke about twincest actually funny.
Michelle Trachtenberg In Ice Princess (2005)
Michelle starred in this millennial Disney classic as Casey Carlyle, a figure skater who teams up with a coach played by Kim Cattrall to conquer the ice.
Michelle Trachtenberg In 17 Again (2009)
Starring alongside Matthew Perry (another star taken too soon), Michelle played Maggie, a girl who unknowingly tries to date her dad when he magically shows up at her school in a younger body. Michelle weirdly had a bunch of incest jokes in multiple roles, but, hey, she made it work.
Michelle Trachtenberg In Gossip Girl (2008-2012, 2022-2023)
And of course, there’s the great Georgina Sparks. Georgina is so iconic that Michelle returned to play her in the Gossip Girl reboot, which wound up being her last on-screen role.
