Daveigh Chase

Whether scaring the wits out of audiences as Samara in The Ring or lending her voice to more family-friendly fare such as Lilo & Stitch and the American release of Spirited Away, young Daveigh Chase had already experienced a rich and diverse career in Hollywood by the tender age of 12. Born in Los Angeles on July 24, 1990, young Chase was a mere three-years-old when she first began to show signs of inherent musical talent. Repeating the notes in pitch-perfect form when a piano tuner came to their house, Chase soon aspired to perform like the kids in the Barney videos that her parents had purchased for her. The following year, young Chase entered the Little Miss America Pageant, and though she didn't come away with top prize in the end, a subsequent win in a national vocal competition and dance contest gave her the confidence needed to keep chasing her dreams. Next appearing in a commercial for Campbell's Soup, Chase's vocal performances at the Timber Carnival and Oregon Jamboree eventually resulted in her taking the lead role in a play in St. George, UT -- a role that caught the eye of Disney scouts and eventually led to her casting in the animated hit Lilo & Stitch.

Following an early television appearance on Sabrina the Teenage Witch in 1998, Chase's film career began to gain momentum. Though she would appear in a few minor roles in 2000, it was the following year that proved to be her breakthrough. With roles in Donnie Darko, A.I., and voice work as the young protagonist in Spirited Away, Chase was ready to take on Hollywood. Though her ability to alternate between haunted and humorous was a main reason for her casting in Lilo & Stitch, audiences would truly find out how haunting she could be in the flesh with the American remake of the breakthrough Japanese horror film The Ring. That same year, Chase would flee a tsunami of rodents in the made-for-television chiller Rats, and it seemed by now that she was truly coming into her own as a notable screen presence. After returning to voice work in Stitch! The Movie and the television series The Adventures of Lilo & Stitch (both 2003), Chase could be spotted in Big Paw: Beethoven 5, The Haunted Lighthouse, and the television series Oliver Beene.

~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide