CNN
—
Anne Hatch, the charming actor whose versatility fueled a remarkable career in television and film that spanned four decades, has died at the age of 53.
“Ann Hech was peacefully taken off life support,” a representative for her family told CNN earlier Sunday night, later confirming the actress’ death.
Hechy’s car crashed into a house in Los Angeles and caught fire on August 5. After the crash, Hechi suffered a “severe anoxic brain injury” that deprived her brain of oxygen, among other critical injuries after the crash, her family and friends said in a statement to CNN.
Hechy was an award-winning actress who appeared in films such as the 1998 remake of Psycho and the rom-com Six Days and Seven Nights opposite Harrison Ford. She also made a cameo in the 2000 HBO film If These Walls Could Talk 2, and in her 2001 memoir, she opened up about her lifelong struggle with mental illness after being abused by her father.
In 1987, Hatch made her television debut on the soap opera Another World, for which she won a Daytime Emmy Award. After leaving the show, she began her film career, appearing in notable films including Donnie Brasco and Wave the Dog.
When Hatch and Ellen DeGeneres started dating in 1997 — around the same time DeGeneres came out in real life and on her eponymous sitcom — they quickly became one of the most famous same-sex couples in the world. They broke up in 2000.
Photos: Actress Anne Hech
Christopher Polk/NBC/Getty Images
Actress Anne Hech poses for a portrait in 2015.
Photos: Actress Anne Hech
Courtesy of the Everett Collection
Hechy, seen here in 1990 with Russell Todd, won a Daytime Emmy for her performance on the soap opera Another World. She played twins Vicky Hudson and Marley Love.
Photos: Actress Anne Hech
Zenith Prods/Kobal/Shutterstock
Hechy appears alongside Catherine Keener in the 1996 film Walking and Talking.
Photos: Actress Anne Hech
Chris Pizzello/AP
Hatch, left, holds hands with comedian Ellen DeGeneres at the 1997 world premiere of Face/Off. They met for several years.
Photos: Actress Anne Hech
Halton Archive/Getty Images
Heche co-starred with Tommy Lee Jones in the 1997 film Vulcan.
Photos: Actress Anne Hech
Mandalay/Baltimore/Kobal/Shutterstock
Hatch and Johnny Depp in a scene from the 1997 film Donnie Brasco.
Photos: Actress Anne Hech
Halton Archive/Getty Images
Heche appears with Robert De Niro in the 1998 film Wag the Dog.
Photos: Actress Anne Hech
Kinokrama/Shutterstock
Hech and Vince Vaughn in the 1998 film Psycho.
Photos: Actress Anne Hech
Kinokrama/Shutterstock
Hatch co-starred with Harrison Ford in the 1998 film Six Days Seven Nights.
Photos: Actress Anne Hech
Danny Keeler/Halton Archive/Getty Images
Heche signs a fan’s hat at the ‘Get Real’ premiere in 1999.
Photos: Actress Anne Hech
Halton Archive/Getty Images
Hech (right) is directed by Sharon Stone in a scene from the 2000 film If These Walls Could Talk 2. DeGeneres (center) also appeared in the film.
Photos: Actress Anne Hech
Steve Granitz/WireImage/Getty Images
From left, Stone, Michelle Williams and Hitch hold the Lucy Awards, presented in 2000 to the creators and actors of If These Walls Could Talk and If These Walls Could Talk 2.
Photos: Actress Anne Hech
Getty Images
Hech married Coley Lafune in 2001. They had a son, Homer, before divorcing in 2009.
Photos: Actress Anne Hech
Theo Warga/WireImage/Getty Images
Hech and Lafoon walk with their son in 2002.
Photos: Actress Anne Hech
Chris Weeks/FilmMagic/Getty Images
Hatch attends the Los Angeles premiere of American Splendor in 2003.
Photos: Actress Anne Hech
Michael Buckner/Getty Images
Hatch and boyfriend James Tapper arrive at the 2010 Emmy Awards. They had a son, Atlas.
Photos: Actress Anne Hech
Michael Caulfield/WireImage/Getty Images
Hechie and actress Conchata Ferrell perform at a theater in Santa Monica, California during a cancer benefit in 2010.
Photos: Actress Anne Hech
Vivian Zink/NBC/Getty Images
Heche, center, appears in the 2013 episode “Save Me”.
Photos: Actress Anne Hech
Eric Liebowitz/NBC/Getty Images
Hech and Giulietta Golia work with Michael J. Fox on a 2013 episode of The Michael J. Fox Show.
Photos: Actress Anne Hech
Phillipe Bosse/Disney General Entertainment Content/Getty Images
Heche in a 2015 episode of Quantico.
Photos: Actress Anne Hech
Patrick Randak/NBC/Getty Images
Hech poses with his son Homer in 2017.
Photos: Actress Anne Hech
Nicholas Hunt/Getty Images
Hechi takes a bow with the rest of the cast during a performance at the 2019 Twentieth Century Benefit Concert. Earlier in her career, Hechy appeared in a Broadway play and was nominated for a Tony Award.
Photos: Actress Anne Hech
Eric McCandless/Disney General Entertainment Content/Getty Images
Heche dances with Kea Motsepe on the 2020 Dancing with the Stars TV competition.
Photos: Actress Anne Hech
Erik Voake/CBS/Getty Images
Heche appears in the episode “All Rise” in 2021.
Photos: Actress Anne Hech
Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic/Getty Images
Hatch attends the Directors Guild of America Awards in March.
Hatch told Page Six last year that her relationship with DeGeneres led to her losing roles and described herself as “patient zero of cancellation culture.”
Still, she said, she considered herself “part of the change” that helped normalize same-sex relationships in mainstream culture.
“I’m in on it,” she told Page Six. “It’s a badge of honor.”
In her 2001 memoir, Call Me Crazy, she said that her father had sexually abused her as a child, and that she suffered from mental illness for much of the first 30 years of her life. She revealed in an interview with CNN’s Larry King that year that her identity is split between herself and the persona she invented as a child to adapt to the abuse.
“I’ve had to live a lot of life to get to where I am now,” she told King. “I had to see the truth and go through the shame, and I’m very grateful for every step I took. I don’t think I could have handled it before.”
Anne Hech’s very public life often overshadowed her screen career
In 2004, Hatch appeared on Broadway in The Twentieth Century, for which she was nominated for a Tony. In recent years, Heche has returned to television, appearing in series such as Brave, Quantico and Chicago Cop. In 2020, she participated in the 29th season of Dancing with the Stars.
Hechi’s Hollywood peers responded to the news of her collapse with an outpouring of support. Her former partner and Tree People co-star James Tupper, with whom she has one of two sons, wrote on Instagram: “Thoughts and prayers for this wonderful woman, actress and mother tonight Anne Hech. We love you.”
