Brad Everett Young, a celebrity photographer, actor and champion of arts education, has died of injuries suffered in a car crash. He was 46.
Young had seen a movie and was driving alone on the 134 Freeway late Sunday night when his car was struck by a vehicle going in the wrong direction, his publicist, Paul Christensen, told The Hollywood Reporter. He died on the scene; the other driver survived and was hospitalized.
A fixture on Hollywood’s red carpets, Young was a familiar face at premieres, galas and awards shows. His photo portfolio included projects or shoots for The Hollywood Reporter, Vanity Fair, Vogue, Elle, Harper’s Bazaar, People and other publications.
Among the celebrities he photographed: David Harbour, Seth Green, Emma Caulfield Ford, Kevin Daniels, Sarah Michelle Gellar and Harvey Guillén, just to name just a few.
As an actor starting in the late 1990s, Young had bit parts on episodes of such shows as Boy Meets World, Felicity, Grey’s Anatomy and Numb3rs and in features including Love & Basketball (2000), Charlie’s Angels (2000), Jurassic Park III (2001), I Love You, Man (2009), The Artist (2011) and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (2017).
Young also founded Dream Loud Official, a grassroots initiative dedicated to restoring and preserving music and art programs in schools nationwide. His aim was to inspire students, teachers and artists and remind communities that “creativity is not a luxury but an essential part of education.”
“Brad’s passion for both the arts and the people behind them was unmatched,” Christensen said in a statement. “He lived his mission of keeping creativity alive, and his legacy will continue through Dream Loud Official.”
Born on July 24, 1979, in Danville, Virginia, Young was the middle child of three. After graduating from Chatham High School and Averett University — he was a writer, photographer and graphic designer on school newspapers and magazines — he came to Los Angeles with plans to attend medical school but changed course to pursue acting.
“L.A. was just the place where I could make those decisions with all the job opportunities the town offered,” he said in a 2015 interview. “In the first month here, I went out on my first audition for a TV series, booked it, joined the Screen Actors Guild, and the rest was history.
“I absolutely fell in love with everything in this business and the journey and strength it takes to accomplish what you want in it.”
He is survived by a brother, Chris. Memorial arrangements will be announced.