Movies

Michelle Trachtenberg’s ‘Harriet the Spy’ Is Streaming Free Right Now

The 1996 film, which marked the actress’ big screen acting debut, is streaming on Pluto.

Photo Credit: Getty Images

Fans mourning the loss of Michelle Trachtenberg following her death Wednesday at the age of 39 are revisiting some of her most beloved works, among them, Harriet the Spy. Before the actress became known as Dawn Summers on Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Georgina Sparks on Gossip Girl, Trachtenberg made a name for herself in the ‘90s when she made her big screen debut opposite Rosie O’Donnell as Harriet M. Welsch in Harriet the Spy.

The film, released in 1996, is currently streaming for free on Pluto TV, Paramount’s free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) service. Harriet the Spy is also available to rent or by on platforms including Prime Video, Apple TV, Fandango at Home, and Google Play Movies.

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Trachtenberg was just 10 when she made her movie debut in Harriet the Spy in 1996. Based on Louise Fitzhugh’s 1964 novel of the same name, the movie centers around Harriet, a sixth-grade student who aspires to become a writer and spy. When her friends find her secret notebook, where she records suspicious activity and keeps a running list of observations about her classmates, the tables are turned, and Harriet resolves to take revenge.

Along with Trachtenberg, the movie also starred O’Donnell as Catherine “Ole Golly.” Trachtenberg told Uproxx in 2016 that she “probably bonded with Rosie [O’Donnell] the most. She was very caring, and so funny. When we had to be serious for a scene we would, but we always went back to giggling and playing games when that scene was done. She was a very giving actor, even off camera.”

“Any scene with Rosie was so special for me,” she said. “She was amazing to work with, and we genuinely had a great time together. She respected me as an actress and I learned a lot from her. The hardest scene was saying goodbye to Golly.”

07/29/96 Rosie O”Donell and Michelle Trachtenberg star in the first Nickolodeon movie “Harriet the Spy”

The New York Police Department confirmed to PEOPLE Wednesday that officers responded to a 911 call at 1 Columbus Place in New York City around at around 8 a.m. Upon arrival, “Officers observed a 39-year-old female unconscious and unresponsive. EMS responded to the location and pronounced the victim deceased.” An investigation into Trachtenberg’s death is ongoing. Her cause of death has not been disclosed, by police sources told ABC 7 that the actress recently underwent a liver transplant and may have experienced complications.

Paying tribute to Trachtenberg following news of her Wednesday passing, O’Donnell said Trachtenberg’s passing was “heartbreaking.” In a statement shared with Us Weekly, she added, “I loved her very much. She struggled the last few years. I wish I could have helped.”