The body of Kalispell-born actress Misty Upham, who was missing for nearly two weeks, was found near Seattle on Thursday.
Upham’s body was found at the bottom of a ravine near the White River in Auburn, Washington on Thursday afternoon, according to authorities. The cause of death is unknown and an autopsy will be performed by the King County Medical Examiner.
Upham was born in Kalispell in 1982 and raised in the Seattle area. The Native American actress performed in the films “August: Osage County,” “Frozen River” and “Django Unchained.”
According to the Auburn Police Department, it took nearly five hours to recover Upham’s body from the bottom of a 150-foot embankment. An initial investigation does not suggest foul play, according to the police department.
Upham had recently moved from California to the Muckleshoot Reservation in Washington to care for her father who was recovering from a stroke. The actress was reported missing by her family Oct. 6, a day after they told police she was suicidal and had stopped taking medication for anxiety and bipolar disorder.
The news that Upham was fighting with depression was shocking to one of her close friends, Laron Chapman, who was planning on moving in with her next summer in California. Chapman, who currently lives in Oklahoma City, told the Beacon on Friday morning that he had talked with Upham on the phone for nearly three hours just two days before she went missing.
“She sounded happy and hopeful,” Chapman said. “So it’s really surprising to me that depression may have had something to do with this because that’s a side of her I never saw.”
Chapman, who works as a writer and producer, first met Upham in 2012 on the set of “August: Osage County.” Chapman said that regardless of how busy Upham was, she would always pick up her phone and that she was passionate about many causes, particularly Native American rights.
“She was very caring, funny and passionate,” he said.