Former child actor Austin Majors has died at the age of 27. TMZ reported that Majors died Saturday night at a homeless shelter in Los Angeles. A source told the media that no foul play was suspected. They believe Major ingested a fatal amount of fentanyl.
An autopsy will be performed on Monday, according to a person familiar with the matter.
A statement from his family said, “[Austin] was a caring, artistically gifted, talented and kind person. Austin is very happy and proud of his acting career. He is an active Eagle Scout and was a Graduated with a salutatorian degree. He then graduated from USC School of Cinematic Arts with a passion for directing and music production.”
“Austin’s sister, Kali, said her fondest memories of Austin were growing up with him on set, volunteering at Kids With a Cause events, and backpacking together,” it said. “Austin was the kind of son, brother, grandson and nephew that we will all be proud of and will always be missed.”
Majors is best known for his portrayal of Theo Sipowicz in NYPD Blue (1999-2004). For 48 episodes, he played the son of Detective Andy Sipowicz, played by Dennis Franz.
His role earned Majors the 2002 Young Artist Award for Best Performance in a Television Series.
In addition to NYPD Blue, Majors appeared in ER (2005), NCIS (2006), Desperate Housewives (2007) and How I Met Your Mother (2009), his final acting roles.
