Kaylee Hottle, the deaf actress known for her role in Godzilla vs. Kong, died in a car crash on Tuesday, July 21, 2026. She was 18. Her father confirmed her death in a Facebook video posted Tuesday, using American Sign Language.
Hottle played Jia, a deaf orphan who forms a bond with Kong, in the 2021 film Godzilla vs. Kong and its 2024 sequel Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire. She was the only deaf actor in the franchise.
Tributes have poured in from co-stars including Millie Bobby Brown and Rebecca Hall, who played her on-screen mother. Hall called Hottle 'a brilliant light' in a statement.
Hottle was born deaf and attended the California School for the Deaf in Riverside. She began acting at age 10 after being discovered at a deaf film festival.
