A Fan-Favorite Child Actor Has Died
Austin Majors, who was best known for his role on NYPD Blue, has died.
Austin Majors, the child actor known best for his role in NYPD Blue, has died. According to The Hollywood Reporter, he was just 27 years old. The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner stated that he died on Saturday, February 11, 2023, in Los Angeles, California, but his cause of death has not yet been made public.
Austin Majors was born Austin Setmajer in 1995 and was already appearing in films two years later, making his on-screen debut in Nevada. He also appeared in movies like Providence and The Price of Air before he was hired to play Detective Andy Sipowicz’s (Dennis Franz) son, Theo Sipowicz, on NYPD Blue from 1999 to 2004.
Austin Majors won the Young Artist Award for Best Performance in a TV Series for that role in 2002 and was nominated for Best Performance in a Voice-Over Role for his performance as Young Jim in Treasure Planet a year later.
The young actor also appeared in numerous television shows, such as Hercules, ER, NCIS, Desperate Housewives, Threshold, and How I Met Your Mother.
Austin Majors wasn’t just a talented actor, however. He was also highly intelligent, to the extent that he was able to skip a grade in school, where he earned top grades in every subject. He graduated from high school in 2013 and went on to study at the University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts, where his major was Film and Television Production. He also had a minor in Music Industry and was a member of the Alpha Tau Omega fraternity, according to IMDb.
In addition to film and school, Austin Majors was also passionate about the outdoors. He enjoyed backpacking, riding horses, and traveling, and was a junior assistant Scoutmaster in the Boy Scouts. At the time of his death, he was still an active Eagle Scout.
The family of Austin Majors released a statement to TMZ, in which they spoke about how “Austin was the kind of son, brother, grandson, and nephew that made us proud.” They elaborated on his younger sister Kali’s favorite memories of him, which involved growing up on set together, going backpacking, and volunteering together.
The circumstances of Austin Majors’ death are not yet clear, but TMZ shares that a source with “direct knowledge” of the situation divulged that no foul play is suspected, but it is possible that the former child star ingested a large and fatal amount of fentanyl. This much less wholesome depiction of the actor’s final moments also included the detail that he was staying at a “homeless housing facility” at the time of his death.
An autopsy should be completed by next Monday, but it will be months before anyone hears the results of Austin Majors’ toxicology report.
Regardless of the circumstances of his death, this loss is a tragic one for the film and television industry. Austin Majors made a big impact in the short time he was on our television screens and in movies, and he will certainly be missed.
