Former child actor Christian Cousins, known for his television and film work alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger, died at the age of 43 after authorities found him lifeless at his home in Irvine, California.
Police in Irvine confirmed to People magazine that officers responded to the actor’s residence at 12:01 p.m. on October 20 following a request from family members asking for a welfare check.
Investigators found Cousins dead inside the property. Police said that no suspicious circumstances emerged from the scene, and the Orange County coroner’s office responded to the location, though officials have not publicly released an official cause of death.
The public learned of the actor’s death on November 13 after his stepbrother, Jonas Roeser, shared the news on social media. Roeser noted in an Instagram post that Christian had been suffering from a severe liver illness before his passing.
“Era un personaggio, pieno di passione ed energia, con grandi storie e sogni ancora più grandi,” Roeser wrote, expressing hope that his brother had finally found peace and freedom from recent suffering.
Born on March 17, 1983, in Orange County, California, Cousins launched his acting career alongside his identical twin brother, Joseph. The young pair shared early television roles, alternating parts to comply with child labor regulations.
Their breakthrough came in the popular CBS soap opera California, a spin-off of the hit series Dallas. Starting in 1987, Christian and Joseph shared the role of Bobby Ewing, appearing in a combined total of 57 episodes until 1992.
In 1990, the brothers secured prominent roles in the Ivan Reitman comedy Kindergarten Cop starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. They shared the character of Dominic, a student in the elementary school classroom where an undercover Los Angeles detective poses as a teacher.
Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, the twins appeared across numerous television and film projects. Their joint credits included Father Dowling Mysteries, The Monster Squad, Intruders, and the 1991 horror film Critters 3.
The brothers also portrayed the characters Hope and Faith in a 1988 episode of Highway to Heaven and starred together as siblings Bradley and Steven in the 1995 film The Babysitters. Christian later pursued individual television roles in series such as Empty Nest, Wings, and Dream On.
While Christian stepped away from acting to build a corporate career as an executive and business partner in the furniture industry, his twin brother Joseph continued playing Bobby Ewing on California through the series’ conclusion in May 1993.
In December 2020, Christian joined a virtual cast reunion celebrating the 30th anniversary of Kindergarten Cop. During the event, he shared behind-the-scenes memories with Schwarzenegger and reflected on his early years in the industry.
