Kaylee Hottle, ‘Godzilla Vs. Kong’ Actress, Dies at 18
Kaylee Hottle, a deaf actress who played the character of Jai in two Godzilla vs. Kong franchise movies, has died. She was 18.
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TMZ was first to report on Hottle’s death in a tragic car crash on Tuesday morning in Maryland, as confirmed by her father, Joshua Hottle to the publication. Coming from an all-deaf family, Joshua Hottle also used American Sign Language (ASL) via a post on Facebook to convey his grief, alongside the caption: “I am taking a flight that I never would like to take.”
The Texas School for the Deaf, where Hottle was educated, in its own Facebook post paid tribute to its former student. “It is with profound sadness that we share the heartbreaking news that one of our TSD seniors, Kaylee Hottle, tragically passed away yesterday in a car accident in Frederick, Maryland. Our hearts are with Kaylee’s family, friends, classmates, and everyone who knew and loved her during this incredibly difficult time.”
Hottle made her movie screen debut in both the original Godzilla vs. Kong movie at the age of 9 and then in the Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire sequel. She played the role of Jia, a deaf, orphaned indigenous Iwi girl rescued on Skull Island by Kong, and then raised by Dr. Ilene Andrews (Rebecca Hall), an anthropological linguist working for U.S. government monster research organization Monarch.
Her character’s ability to communicate with the giant ape via ASL created poignant moments in the movies. That role was preceded by Hottle appearing in a 2017 commercial for the video relay service app Convo around Mother’s Day, where the young girl’s ability to convey emotion using sign language convinced the producers of the Godzilla vs. Kong movies to cast her in the role of Jai.
“I had a connection with Convo. They asked me to be in a commercial one day, and so I did that commercial. And then the assistant director of [Kong: Skull Island] saw me and they thought I matched the character description of Jia,” Hottle said using ASL for a profile in a March 2024 edition of the Houston Chronicle newspaper.
She added about her acting experience on set: “I would read the script, and [director] Adam [Wingard] would explain to me exactly what he wanted me to do. And I also had my parents’ support and translation of the script, and I just brought it to life.”
Alexander Skarsgard in a March 2021 profile in the Australian pop culture Junkee website praised Hottle, his deaf co-star, for being a surprisingly assured actress on screen and on set. “It’s her first movie. It’s fascinating how comfortable she is in front of the camera and how quickly she takes notes from the director Adam (Wingard). He’ll explain something and she’ll be like ‘got it, got it’ then she’ll just do it and everyone’s like ‘the fuck … how did she?’ She’s so professional and just incredibly … There’s so much going on on her face, her expression and the subtleties of that is fascinating to watch,” Skarsgard said.
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