Skye McCole Bartusiak has died at the age of 21.
The actress, who played the role of Mel Gibson’s daughter in
The Patriot, was found by her boyfriend on her bed in the garage apartment next to her parents’ home in Houston, Texas.
According to reports, the cause of death is unknown but her mother Helen did say that she suffered from epileptic fits.
Mrs Bartusiak was quoted by
Sky News as saying: “We think she had a seizure and choked and nobody was there”.
She added that her daughter, who could not be resuscitated, was healthy and did not drink alcohol or take drugs.
Bartusiak also starred in
Don’t Say a Word, alongside Michael Douglas, as well as
The Cider House Rules and hit show
24.
Skye McCole Bartusiak in The Patriot. 
