Michelle Trachtenberg’s shocked neighbors are reflecting on the months leading up to her unexpected death at the age of 39.
The actress went into cardiac arrest and died in her Midtown West apartment Wednesday after having recently received a liver transplant.
Her official cause of death is not yet known, but it is not being investigated as suspicious.
“Michelle always seemed happy. I never noticed anything off about her at all,” Rafael Williams, who lived above Trachtenberg, told Us Weekly shortly after news broke.
The actress went into cardiac arrest and died in her Midtown West apartment Wednesday after having recently received a liver transplant.“I didn’t know her personally, but she always made a point to say hi in the elevator. [Her death is] shocking to me because she didn’t seem to have a problem in the world.”
Williams’ “hope” is that “her family is OK.”
Another one of Trachtenberg’s neighbors, Ariana Rodriguez, also gushed over the “Harriet the Spy” star, calling her a “great neighbor” who “wasn’t loud” and “smiled at everyone in the hallways.”
She added, “I’m so sad that I won’t be seeing her anymore in the building. She always said hi to me.”
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“Michelle always seemed happy. I never noticed anything off about her at all,” Rafael Williams, who lived above Trachtenberg, said shortly after news broke.
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“I didn’t know her personally, but she always made a point to say hi in the elevator. [Her death is] shocking to me because she didn’t seem to have a problem in the world,” he added.
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However, Rodriguez noticed Trachtenberg had become “svelte” and looked “less and less like herself in the last few months,” which echoes what fans had been saying for at least a year.
Trachtenberg had seemingly lost weight, her hair had thinned and the whites of her eyes appeared yellow, but she insisted in January 2024 that she was “happy and healthy.”
Rodriguez also gave insight into the “Gossip Girl” star’s relationship with talent agent and producer Jay Cohen.
“I saw her with her boyfriend a few times, and they were always walking either hand-in-hand or with his arm around her,” she revealed.
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Another one of Trachtenberg’s neighbors, Ariana Rodriguez, also gushed over Trachtenberg, calling her a “great neighbor” who “wasn’t loud” and “smiled at everyone in the hallways.”
Matthew McDermott
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However, Rodriguez noticed Trachtenberg had become “svelte” and looked “less and less like herself in the last few months,” which echoes what fans had been saying for at least a year.Cohen, a father of two adult daughters, was first linked to Trachtenberg in 2020.
Though they were a relatively private couple, he did upload a few photos with the “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” star throughout their relationship.
“#fireworks are every day with this one !! 
,” he captioned a Fourth of July selfie in 2021.
Cohen then shared a mirror selfie in honor of Valentine’s Day in 2023, writing alongside it, “My valentine.”
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Trachtenberg had seemingly lost weight, her hair had thinned and the whites of her eyes appeared yellow, but she insisted in January 2024 that she was “happy and healthy.”
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“I saw her with her boyfriend [Jay Cohen] a few times, and they were always walking either hand-in-hand or with his arm around her,” Rodriguez revealed.Trachtenberg also shared pictures with her beau over the years, most recently on Valentine’s Day in 2025, less than two weeks before her untimely passing.
Cohen has neither posted about his late girlfriend’s death nor responded to Page Six’s request for comment.
A flurry of the actress’ former co-stars — including Rosie O’Donnell, Ed Westwick, Kenan Thompson and Kim Cattrall — are mourning her death with online tributes.
