Photo: Instagram
Stefanie Sherk died unexpectedly at the age of 43. What happened?
By Rebekah Kuschmider — Written on Apr 29, 2019
Oscar nominee Demian Bichir stunned fans this week when he confirmed on social media that his wife, 43-year-old actress Stefanie Sherk, had passed away. Within a matter of days a corner’s report was released giving rise to rumors of suicide. Bachir, with tremendous honesty and courage, confirmed the tragic details in a series of Instagram posts. Who was she? How did Stefanie Sherk die? Read on to learn more about her tragic passing.
1. Actress and writer
Sherk, who was born in Canada, graduated with a degree in history from the University of Western Ontario. She has had a long and steady career working in film and television. She studied acting at the Neighborhood Playhouse in New York City and she has had roles on shows such as #Hashtag: The Series, Valentine’s Day, Star Power and Loco Love. She also appears in the upcoming horror movie Grudge alongside Jackie Weaver, John Cho and Andrea Riseborough.
Sherk had an extensive acting resume.
2. Demian Bichir
Bichir and Sherk started dating in 2010 though they were very private about the details of their relationship. In 2015, the Oscar nominee spoke to People about their relationship, saying, “It’s really hard to actually know if something is forever. I never plan that. You have to go day-by-day. You love who you love every day, and you expect that to last forever. But you also have to be truthful when things are not right. And that’s when instead of having 14 kids everywhere and 18 marriages you need to be smart and truthful and fair to the people you love. If you’re lucky enough to go to the next level, then that’s beautiful, too.”
They have been toegther since 2010.
3. Announcement
US Weekly reported that Sherk’s husband, Damien Bichir posted an announcement about her passing, saying “Dear friends, On behalf of the Sherk and the Bichir Nájera families, it is with inconceivable pain that I announce that on April 20, 2019, our dearest Stefanie Sherk, my beloved and loving wife, passed away peacefully. It has been the saddest and toughest time of our lives and we don’t know how much time it will take for us to overcome this pain.” He went on to write, “We thank everybody beforehand for their prayers and we respectfully ask for your understanding so we may grieve in peace and privacy in these incredibly difficult times. It is our sincerest hope that our beautiful Stefanie, my angel and love of my life, will rest in eternal peace.”
Bichir confirmed her death on Instagram.
4. Cause of death
While Sherk’s family tried to keep the circumstances of her death private as they grieved, a coroner’s report was made public and revealed that the actress took her own life. The report also says that the cause of death was drowning well as anoxic encephalopathy and asphyxia, which is consistent with a drowning death. The Blast reported that Bachir found Sherk unresponsive at the bottom of a swimming pool. Bachir called 911 immediately and Sherk was transported to a hospital where she died eight days later. The coroner's report stated she had intentionally weighted herself down.
The Hollywood press reported on her death.
5. Confirmation
Bichir responded to the publication of the reports by posting “It is with courage, dignity and love for our Stefanie, that we confirm such information. It was our hope that we would have some time to heal and grieve before we could talk about this issue that affects way too many people around the globe. This is a serious and, in many cases like ours, an invisible affliction that corners human beings in a terrifying and dark place."
He then addressed the severity of depression as a life-threatening illness for some people. Bichir wrote, "Depression has taken the lives of so many beautiful, wonderful, talented people such as my beloved wife, Stefanie. The nightmare that we have been through over the last several days will only be eased if we succeed in taking our pain and sorrow out into the world as an important message of awareness so, hopefully, other lives can be saved."
Bichir confirmed her cause of death in a serie sof stark social media posts.
If you or someone you know is considering suicide, please contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255), text “home” to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 or go to suicidepreventionlifeline.org.
Rebekah Kuschmider has been writing about celebrities, pop culture, entertainment, and politics since 2010. Her work has been seen at Ravishly, Babble, Scary Mommy, The Mid, Redbook online, and The Broad Side. She is the creator of the blog Stay at Home Pundit and she is a cohost of the weekly podcast The More Perfect Union.