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Harry Hains death: American Horror Story star dies aged 27 after ‘struggles with addiction’

Actor, who identified as gender fluid, also worked as a model and appeared in Netflix series The OA

Roisin O'Connor
Friday 10 January 2020 09:35 GMT
Harry Hains stars in the trailer for 'The Surface'

American Horror Story star Harry Hains has died aged 27, it has emerged.

The news was confirmed by Hains’s mother, Jane Badler, who wrote on Instagram: “He was 27 and had the world at his feet. But sadly he struggled with mental illness and addiction.

“A brilliant spark shone bright [for] too short a time... I will miss you, Harry, every day of my life.”

Badler, an actor who has appeared in Australian soap opera Neighbours, did not reveal Hains’s cause of death.

Hains was raised in Melbourne, Australia, before he moved to the US to pursue an acting career.

As well as his role in American Horror Story: Hotel, Hains also appeared in Netflix series The OA. He was also signed to modelling agency Chadwick, and composed music under the name ANTIBOY, an alter ego he described as a “gender-fluid robot from the future”.

Hains identified as gender fluid himself in a March 2019 interview with Boys by Girls magazine, in which he was observed using “he” and “him” pronouns.

“I know that I am born male but I don’t think I represent what it means to be a man,” Hains said. “I believe we should be whatever we want. It gets kind of confusing when we start labelling ourselves, so I try to stay away from labels.”

He added: “I grew up in Melbourne and I had a very open and accepting family. Dating someone of either sex didn’t make a difference to me.”

A memorial service for Hains will take place at Hollywood Forever on Sunday in Los Angeles on 12 January at 3pm.

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