The actress Jessica Campbell, who was best known for her roles in Election and Freaks and Geeks, has tragically passed away in Portland, Oregon.
She was 38 years old.
Campbell gained celebrity status when she starred alongside Reese Witherspoon and Matthew Broderick in the role of Tammy Metzler in the 1999 movie Election, which was a satire on high school politics.
Campbell’s cousin, Sarah Wessling, told TMZ that she passed away on December 29.
Wessling explained that Campbell had just finished a normal workday when she returned home to visit with her mother and aunt before she tragically collapsed in the bathroom. There were attempts to revive her, but they were, unfortunately, unsuccessful.
Jessica Campbell’s cause of death unknown
The cause of death is currently unknown, and her family is still awaiting the results of a full autopsy from the Multnomah County Medical Examiner.
She is survived by her ten-year-old son Oliver.
The family also said she had been complaining about a bit of a cold and had felt a little congested. They also said that they didn’t think her death was related to COVID-19.
Campbell’s most famous role was that of Tammy Metzler in Election, where she played a disillusioned and vengeful schoolgirl who ran for student president.
She ran on a cynical platform that called the election “stupid” and promised to abolish the student government. She won a standing ovation for her introductory speech but was later removed from the ballot and expelled from the school.
Campbell also won praise for her role as Amy Andrews in 2000’s Freaks and Greeks.
Fans took to Twitter to pay tribute to Jessica Campbell
One fan wrote about her two iconic roles: “RIP Jessica Campbell, who gave us two truly iconic teen girl performances.”
RIP Jessica Campbell, who gave us two truly iconic teen girl performances (!) in the same year (!!!) pic.twitter.com/ffLqLKmqn3
— emily (@emilygagne) January 13, 2021
Another fan stated that Tammy Metzler in Election was “one of my favorite parts of one of my favorite movies.”
Just heard Jessica Campbell passed away. Not as well known and probably won’t get the same attention as others but as Tammy Metzler in #Election she is one of my favorite parts of one of my favorite movies#RIP pic.twitter.com/b1qI5vMAWZ
— Brian Hurst (@Hurstcules) January 13, 2021
And another fan called her “phenomenal” in the role of Tammy Metzler.
R.I.P. Jessica Campbell. So phenomenal as Tammy Metzler in ELECTION (1999). pic.twitter.com/Kp9y1mNTes
— Bill Geerhart (@CONELRAD6401240) January 13, 2021
She sadly gave up acting and was working as a Naturopathic Physician. Naturopathic doctors specialize in using natural remedies and optimizing self-healing to cure their patients.
Wessling has set up a GoFundMe page to raise funds for her cousin’s funeral costs and also to provide for the future needs of her son Oliver.
The fund has a target of $20,000, and at the time of writing, it had already reached $22,300. Judd Apatow, who was a producer on Freaks and Geeks, donated $5,000.
Recent celebrity deaths have included Gilligan Island’s Dawn Wells, who passed away at the age of 82 after suffering complications from COVID-19, and rapper MF Doom who died aged 49.