Famous People Who Died At 25

Tupac Amaru Shakur, popularly known as 2Pac or Makaveli, is considered as one of the greatest American rappers of all time. Talent and trouble went hand in hand in Shakur’s journey to fame; the higher Shakur rose in his iconic status, the deeper he became entangled in gang violence and an infamous rivalry, which sadly led to his untimely demise.

Jules Bianchi, grandson of GT World Champion Mauro Bianchi, was a Formula 3 Euro Series winner and a French Formula Renault 2.0 champion. A collision during the 2014 Japanese Grand Prix caused him a diffuse axonal injury. He was in a coma for 8 months before dying at age 25.

Wilfred Owen was an English soldier and poet. One of the most important poets during World War I, Owen wrote about the horrors of gas warfare. His life and career inspired a docudrama titled Wilfred Owen: A Remembrance Tale where he was portrayed by Samuel Barnett. In 1989, the Wilfred Owen Association was established to commemorate his life and poetry.

Cheyenne Brando was a French model and daughter of legendary American actor, Marlon Brando. Troubled by drug addiction and bouts of depression throughout her teenage and adult life, Cheyenne also struggled to cope with personal losses, such as the death of her partner Dag Drollet, who was fatally shot by her half-brother Christian. Brando committed suicide at age 25.

Brad Renfro was living in a trailer park when director Joel Schumacher spotted him and cast him in The Client. Over the years, Renfro appeared in films such as Tom and Huck and Apt Pupil. He, however, struggled with drug abuse and died of a heroin overdose at 25.

As Charles the Bold’s daughter, Mary of Burgundy, was also known as Mary the Rich, for her affluence. While she had a fairy-tale marriage with Archduke Maximilian of Austria and had two children, she died abruptly at age 25, after being thrown from her horse during a hunting trip.

Aubrey Beardsley was an English illustrator and author, whose works emphasized the grotesque, the decadent, and the erotic. A leading figure in the aesthetic movement, he was deeply influenced by black ink drawings. He attended classes at the Westminster School of Art before beginning his career as an artist. He was considered an eccentric person.  

Ron Goldman was a restaurant waiter who was a good friend of Nicole Brown Simpson, the ex-wife of O. J. Simpson. He and Nicole were murdered in 1994, and Simpson was eventually found guilty for their deaths. While Ron worked primarily as a waiter, he also modeled occasionally. He had become friends with Nicole just weeks before their murders.

Austrian racing driver Helmuth Koinigg was from an affluent family but struggled to finance his racing dreams initially. He tragically passed away in a deadly crash at age 25, in what was his second Grand Prix start, the 1974 US Grand Prix, when a suspension failure caused him to be decapitated.

Roger Williamson was a British racing driver best remembered for winning the British Formula Three Championship title twice. Williamson died at the age of 25 while competing in his second F1 race during the 1973 Dutch Grand Prix in the Netherlands.

Emilia Plater was a Polish-Lithuanian revolutionary and noblewoman. Often compared with France's Joan of Arc, Plater is seen as a national heroine in Belarus, Lithuania, and Poland. Emilia Plater's story has inspired numerous works of art and literature and she is often seen as a symbol of women empowerment in Lithuania.

Justin Pierce was a British skateboarder and actor, best known for playing Casper in the 1995 coming-of-age drama film, Kids. Pierce, who had a troubled early life due to his parents' separation, started using marijuana and heroin, for which he was also arrested. At the age of 25, Justin Pierce committed suicide amidst a successful acting career.

Clara Maass was an American nurse who volunteered as a contract nurse and served in the United States Army during the Spanish-American War. She served again in the Eighth U.S. Army Corps from 1899 to 1900. After her second assignment with the army, Clara Maass volunteered for experiments to study yellow fever. She died of the disease at age 25.

Alexander Schmorell was a Russian-German revolutionary best remembered for co-founding the popular resistance group White Rose, which opposed the Nazi German regime. He was executed by the Nazis and was later glorified as a saint by the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia. Alexander Schmorell is also venerated throughout the world by Orthodox Christians.