Corey Haim – star of The Lost Boys – has died at a hospital in Los Angeles. He was 38.
Haim, famous for his on-off friendship with fellow child actor, Corey Feldman, passed away in the early hours of Wednesday morning at Providence St. Joseph Medical Centre in Burbank. No cause of death has yet been given, although an accidental drug overdose has been rumoured. A post-mortem will take place to determine the cause of death.
Haim, whose once-promising career had been derailed by addictions to drink and drugs, was making something of a comeback in recent years, with roles in Crank 2: High Voltage and The Lost Boys: The Tribe, in which he reprised his signature role – albeit briefly – as Sam Emerson.
Although his starring turn in Joel Schumacher’s original The Lost Boys, back in 1987, wasn’t his first movie role (he had previously starred in the likes of Silver Bullet, the Stephen King werewolf adaptation, and teen comedy Lucas), it launched Haim and Feldman as teen idols. Quickly becoming fast friends, they appeared in the likes of Licence To Drive and **Dream A Little Dream soon after. **
However, further success eluded the Canada-born Haim, and he soon became ensnared in various addictions. He filed for bankruptcy in 1997, a low point in a decade which saw him make several more films with Feldman, including a sequel to Dream A Little Dream.
The tumultuous friendship endured through two recent seasons of reality TV show, The Two Coreys, before a falling-out over Haim’s continued drug addiction, and the promise – or lack thereof – for Haim in The Lost Boys sequel. A reconciliation followed, although a third season of the show did not. He remained, though, a cult figure.
At the time of his death, Haim had – according to the IMDb – one film, Decisions, in the can, with several more at the pre-production stage, signalling a willingness to throw himself into his work. He had, famously, taken out a full-page advert in Variety in 2008, which read, “This is not a stunt. I'm back. I'm ready to work. I'm ready to make amends.” It’s truly sad that he has died at a time when he seemed set to make good on his promise.