The L.A. County Medical Examiner-Coroner has revealed that Tyler Sanders, the 18-year-old star of Amazon’s Just Add Magic: Mystery City, died from the effects of fentanyl, as reported by Deadline. The coroner stated that Sanders’ death was accidental and that the coroner’s report did not find any other causes of death or significant conditions during its investigation. The case has been labeled closed.
In June of this year, Sanders was found dead at his Los Angeles home. Throughout his career, he had guest starring roles on popular shows such as 9-1-1: Lone Star, Fear the Walking Dead, and The Rookie, in addition to appearing in several short films. He rose to prominence with his role as Leo in Just Add Magic in 2019, leading to starring role in the spinoff series Just Add Magic: Mystery City in 2020. He was remembered by his agent, Pedro Tapia, as a “talented actor with a bright future” and by his family as a hard-working and ambitious individual who struggled with depression, via Deadline.
Following Sanders’ death, his family released statements advocating for mental health awareness. In his statement, his father, David Sanders, stated that, “Tyler fell into drug use, not as a way to have fun socially, but rather as an attempt to overcome his profound mental health struggle,” as reported by Deadline. His mother, Ginger Sanders added, “I want others to understand that we are a family much like all other families who never thought this could happen to us.”
Joe Nussbaum, director of Just Add Magic: Mystery City, has created the “Do More 4 Tyler” initiative in honor of Sanders, with the goal of improving how the entertainment industry approaches the mental health of child actors. Deadline reports that Nussbaum stated, “Tyler was so focused on his acting career that he would often write “Do More” on his hand to remind him to work to achieve his goals. Now, it’s our turn to “Do More”. In Tyler’s honor, myself and industry colleagues throughout kids TV have come together to form the “Do More” Initiative. We want to improve how the industry approaches the mental health of our youngest and most vulnerable colleagues – child actors.”