29-Year-Old Actress Zoey Alexandria Dies From Brain Swelling

Alexandria voiced The Unknown in the 'Dead By Daylight' horror video game.

By Allison Schonter

Dead By Daylight voice actress Zoey Alexandria has died. Alexandria, also known as Zoey Wendorf, passed away on April 30 in Chicago, Illinois from paediatric acute-onset neuropsychiatric syndrome (PANDAS), a form of encephalitis that is rare among adults, according to an online obituary. She was 29.

Alexandria was diagnosed with PANDAS, a rare form of brain swelling, in 2022 after having "been really sick," according to a GoFundMe set up to pay for bills. Although PANDAS is rare among adults, Alexandria's "pre-existing IGg deficiency and the chronic strep infections, which she's dealt with all her life, made her extra vulnerable which is why she developed PANDAS so late." Due to her health struggles, the voice actress was unable to work, with the GoFundMe page created with a $10,000 goal to help Alexandria cover the cost of medical care, food, and rent. According to a post to her YouTube channel, per PinkNews, Alexandria chose to stop treatment in March, as the effects were "absolutely horrendous." At the time, Alexandria said, "the main thing I've learned is that life is too precious to focus on things beyond those you love and those who love you. Love is, and always has been, the answer."

Alexandria was known for her voice work in the horror game Dead by Daylight. She voiced The Unknown, one of dozens of killers in the game who was introduced as the Killer of CHAPTER 31: All Things Wicked. The character was meant to be "uncanny human-shaped figures and monsters seen in analog horror such as The Mandela Catalogue where creatures called Alters terrorize their victims." Although The Unknown wears the corpses of its victims and uses their voices, the character's body shape does not change and remains conventionally masculine, which caused controversy when The Unknown debuted.

At the time, Alexandria, who is trans, accused Behaviour Interactive, the owners of Death by Daylight, of transphobia, stating, per The Sun, that she was "told at the time I was voicing the character that there was no model and that the creature was supposed to be amorphous. They had no model design before I recorded my lines." Alexandria said it was her "assumption that the design team took my medical history, and my ability to use multiple voices as an opportunity to create character models that encapsulate my medical history as trans and capitalize on catering to the transphobic community. I was tricked into voicing a stereotype. Since yesterday, I have been virally harassed for being trans, by thousands of people... I am so upset, so infuriated that people are comparing trans people to these clearly TRANSPHOBIC character skins."

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A spokesperson from Behavior Interactive responded to the controversy by sharing, "we want to say loudly and unequivocally that this malicious content and attitude is unacceptable and has no place in Dead by Daylight." The company also defended Alexandria, calling her "highly talented" and stating that they were "privileged to collaborate with her."

In a statement confirming Alexandria's passing, Behavior Interactive said, "like many in our community, we're deeply saddened to learn that The Unknown's voice actress, Zoey Alexandria, has passed away. We welcomed her into our world, and her talent shone brightly through her performance.

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