Sophie Nyweide's cause of death under investigation: What to know

Sophie Nyweide, a young actress who appeared in the films "Mammoth" and "An Invisible Sign,"  has died at age 24, and police in Vermont are investigating her cause of death. 

Nyweide died on April 14 in Bennington, Vermont, according to an obituary shared by her family and statements made to The Hollywood Reporter.

Sophie Nyweide’s cause of death

What we know:

Nyweide’s mother, former actress Shelly Gibson, told The Hollywood Reporter that police in Bennington, Vermont, "are investigating" the circumstances around her daughter’s cause of death. According to TMZ, citing local police, her body was found on a riverbank not far from a high school in Bennington around 4 a.m. local time, and she was declared dead at the scene.

"We're told her body was near a lean-to -- a makeshift structure made from downed trees -- and nothing is being ruled out at this point in terms of a cause of death," TMZ reported, citing the Bennington Police Department. 

The police are "looking into a range of possible causes, including foul play," TMZ added.

Police told TMZ that Nyweide was with a man when she died, and he is cooperating with investigators. TMZ added that the man is not considered a suspect or person of interest. 

"Police tell us there were other people hanging out with Sophie at the lean-to before her death ... and cops are trying to track them down for interviews," TMZ reported. 

What we don't know:

It remains unclear exactly how Nyweide died. An autopsy is still pending and will include a toxicology report, TMZ reported.

Dig deeper:

In a separate statement to TMZ about the death, Gibson said her daughter "was using drugs and was a tiny young woman." She also told TMZ that Nyweide was with other people when she died. 

"I didn't know them. There is an investigation ongoing," Gibson told the outlet. "The autopsy results are not in. They said it would take 6-8 weeks. So I can't say definitively."

The backstory:

In addition to "Mammoth" and "An Invisible Sign," Nyweide also appeared in films like Noah Baumbach’s "Margot at the Wedding," "Shadows & Lies" in Darren Aronofsky’s "Noah," starring Russell Crowe.

She had a gig on the ABC hidden-camera show "What Would You Do?" in 2015, which was her final onscreen credit, according to the Hollywood Reporter. 

What they're saying:

"Sophie was a kind and trusting girl," Nyweide’s family wrote in her obituary. "Often this left her open to being taken advantage of by others. She wrote and drew voraciously, and much of this art depicts the depth she had, and it also represents the pain she suffered. Many of her writings and artwork are roadmaps of her struggles and traumas."

"Even with those roadmaps, diagnoses and her own revelations, those closest to her, plus therapists, law enforcement officers and others who tried to help her, are heartbroken their efforts couldn’t save her from her fate," the obituary continued. "She self-medicated to deal with all the trauma and shame she held inside, and it resulted in her death. She repeatedly said she would ‘handle it’ on her own and was compelled to reject the treatment that might possibly have saved her life."