Transgender actor, activist Alexis Arquette dead at 47, cause unknown

Alexis Arquette – transgender actress and activist and sister of Patricia and David Arquette – passed away surrounded by family and friends on Sunday September 11th, aged just 47.

Shortly after she transitioned, Alexis appeared on The Surreal Life in 2006, bringing transgender visibility to the mainstream, almost a decade before Caitlyn Jenner chronicled her journey on her reality show.

“Alexis was a brilliant artist and painter, a singer, an entertainer and an actor”, Richmond’s statement adds.

During her career Alexis appeared in Pulp Fiction, Last Exit To Brooklyn, Of Mice and Men and The Bride of Chucky. She was a vanguard in the fight for understanding and acceptance for all trans people.

“Alexis was born as Robert, our brother. As she moved through her process, she became our sister, teaching us what real love is”, she said.

In 2007, she showcased her transition in the 2007 documentary, Alexis Arquette: She’s My Brother, and was an advocate for transgender Americans. Oscar victor Patricia Arquette remembered her sister on Twitter, by sharing the late Bowie’s song, “Starman“. “We are all heartbroken she is no longer with us, but we are grateful for the grace and kindness we were all shown during this hard time”.

A cause of death was not given. “We will love and miss you forever”, she wrote.

While Sherlock star Gatiss wrote, “I remember falling for Alexis Arquette (and Craig Chester) in a lovely and now sadly appropriately titled little film called Grief”.

“We held her and sang her David Bowie’s “Starman” as she punched through the veil to the other side”, the family said.

She portrayed a Boy George impersonator in 1998’s The Wedding Singer, starring Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore, a role she told Newsweek she regretted. Another bright light gone out far too soon.

The siblings also said that as Alexis was transitioning from her identity as Robert back then, she thought them “tolerance and accpetance”, as well as the meaning of “real love”.

“The family asks that in lieu of flowers or gifts, donations please be sent to organizations that support the LGBTQ community in honor of Alexis Arquette”.