Anton Yelchin

From the time he decided to perform onscreen at four years old, Russian-born actor Anton Yelchin was on the fast track to stardom starting with his breakthrough role in "Hearts in Atlantis" (2001). Though he had his start on the big screen, Yelchin earned his stripes on television, landing several guest spots on long-running shows before being cast as a series regular on the short-lived comedic drama, "Huff" (Showtime, 2004-06). Despite the critical acclaim for the show and a few awards for co-star Blythe Danner, "Huff" was finished after only two seasons. Undeterred, Yelchin continued to rack up an impressive number of credits in several television and feature projects, though true celebrity still eluded him. But that all changed when Yelchin scored the role of Pavel Chekov in the blockbuster feature remake of "Star Trek" (2009), which practically guaranteed that the young actor instant stardom. The handsome young actor went on to work in several high profile productions, including Jim Jarmusch's vampire drama "Only Lovers Left Alive" (2013) and the cult horror hit "Green Room" (2015), as well as sequels to his breakthrough hit. His death in a freak car accident at his home in Studio City, California on June 19, 2016 at the age of 27 shocked friends and fans alike.

Born on March 11, 1989, in St. Petersburg, Russia, Yelchin was the son of professional figure skaters Viktor and Irina Yelchin. Despite having been popular performers with the Leningrad Ice Ballet, Yelchin's parents -- both Soviet Jews who were denied the chance to represent their country at the 1972 Olympic Games due to discrimination -- emigrated to the United States soon after their son was born, where they were granted asylum as political refugees. Settling in Tarzana, CA, his parents found work as figure skating coaches, while Yelchin declared his intentions of becoming an actor when he was four years old. With his parent's encouragement, Yelchin began taking acting classes. By the time he was 10, he made his onscreen debut in a 2000 episode of the long-running medical drama, "ER" (NBC, 1994-2009).

The role soon led to him landing his first big break in the drama "Hearts in Atlantis" (2001). Adapted from a novella by Stephen King, the film performed disappointingly at the box office, but earned Yelchin critical praise for his portrayal of the fatherless young protagonist, Bobby Garfield, who befriends an otherworldly older man (Anthony Hopkins) with supernatural gifts. Yelchin immediately followed with smaller parts in "15 Minutes" (2001) and "Along Came a Spider" (2001), and continued turning in guest spots on hit shows like "The Practice" (ABC, 1997-2004), "Without A Trace" (CBS, 200209 ) and "NYPD Blue" (ABC, 1993-2005). Continuing his steady employment on the small screen, Yelchin had an amusing appearance on "Curb Your Enthusiasm"(HBO, 2000- ), which he followed by starring in the made-for-cable movie "Jack" (Showtime, 2004), a coming-of-age drama about an adolescent dealing with his burgeoning sexual feelings while his parents go through a divorce.

Yelchin graduated to regular series status when he landed on the short-lived cult favorite, "Huff," playing the miscreant son of a Los Angeles-based psychiatrist (Hank Azaria) who is forced to deal with all manner of traumas after a 15-year-old gay patient commits suicide in his office. Though "Huff" lasted only two years, Yelchin received considerable praise for his performance on the award-winning show. Alongside episodes of "Criminal Minds" (CBS, 2005- ), and "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" (NBC/USA, 2001-2011), the young actor returned to the feature world with a turn in the coming of age drama, "House of D" (2004), in which he played an adolescent boy whose friendship with a mentally challenged man (Robin Williams) leads to unfortunate circumstances. In "Fierce People" (2006), he was the adventurous son of a drug- and alcohol-addled Manhattan socialite (Diane Lane) who is forced into living with her billionaire paramour (Donald Sutherland).

Yelchin continued to rise with his starring turn in the independent coming-of-age comedy "Charlie Bartlett" (2008), in which he was a public high school student kicked out of every possible boarding school who sets up his own psychiatric practice -- complete with dispensing drugs -- for the youthful populace. He was set for stardom when he was announced to play a young Pavel Chekov, the Russian navigator aboard the U.S.S. Enterprise, in J.J. Abrams' highly anticipated reboot of "Star Trek" (2009). Shortly after that sci-fi movie became a blockbuster, he appeared within the genre again for "Terminator Salvation," which received a mixed reception. Continuing to be incredibly busy, Yelchin was featured in a slew of 2011 movies, including the romance film "Like Crazy," the CGI-heavy cartoon-inspired "The Smurfs" and a lively remake of the horror comedy "Fright Night," co-starring Colin Farrell and David Tennant. In 2013, he returned to the Enterprise for "Star Trek Into Darkness," another top-tier installment in the franchise, and reprised his role as Clumsy Smurf in "The Smurfs 2," which was critically lambasted but made a killing at the box office. In addition to starring in the indie thriller "Odd Thomas" (2013), Yelchin co-starred with Tilda Swinton and Tom Hiddleston in Jim Jarmusch's stylish vampire drama "Only Lovers Left Alive" (2013) and William H. Macy's musical drama "Rudderless" (2014). Co-starring roles in the romantic comedy "5 to 7" (2014) and Michael Almereyda's Shakespeare adaptation "Cymbeline" (2014) were followed by leads in the comedy horror film "Burying the Ex" (2014), Paul Schrader's psychological thriller "Dying of the Light" (2014) and neo-western "Broken Horses" (2015). His lead role opposite Patrick Stewart in the punk rock-set horror film "Green Room" (2015) garnered extremely positive reviews, and he completed work on his third Star Trek film, "Star Trek Beyond" (2016) and indie dysfunctional family drama "We Don't Belong Here" (2016). On June 19, 2016, after he didn't show up to a planned rehearsal, friends discovered Anton Yelchin outside his home in Studio City, California, pinned between his car and the security gate; authorities reported that apparently Yelchin had left his still-running car, which then accidentally rolled down the steep driveway. He was pronounced dead later that day. He was 27 years old.