Skye McCole Bartusiak

Skye McCole Bartusiak was an American child actress whose films included "The Patriot" (2000), "Against the Ropes" (2004), and "Boogeyman" (2005). Bartusiak was born in Houston, Texas. With the help of her parents Donald and Helen Bartusiak, the blonde Texas native began acting at an early age. When she was seven years old, she was seen in the Academy Award-winning drama "The Cider House Rules" (1999), which starred Michael Caine and Toby Maguire, and the made-for-TV film "Witness Protection" (1999). Bartusiak's first substantial role in a feature came when she played the daughter of Mel Gibson's lead character in the historical war film "The Patriot" (2000). She also appeared in several guest appearances in popular television shows, most notably as Megan Matheson in the popular action series, "24" (Fox 2001-2010). In 2004, she played the younger version of Meg Ryan's character in "Against the Ropes" and appeared alongside Emily Deschanel and Lucy Lawless in horror film "Boogeyman" (2005). She began focusing on directing her own movies, beginning with the short film documentary "University of Penn Relay Carnival" in 2011. Two years later, she starred and directed in her own short film, "Bushido" (2013) and was in the early stages of directing her first feature film in mid-2014. However, on July 19, 2014, Bartusiak was found dead in her Texas apartment by her boyfriend and mother. According to a statement released by Bartusiak's mother, she had recently begun suffering from epileptic seizures, which may likely have played a role in her death.