Actress Brittany Murphy has died at the age of 32, a hospital spokesperson has confirmed.
Reports say Murphy suffered cardiac arrest at the home of her husband, Simon Monjack, and was transported to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, where she was pronounced dead at 10:04 a.m.
Ed Winter, Assistant Chief Coroner in Los Angeles County, said the cause of death "appears to be natural."
Murphy apparently collapsed in the bathroom Sunday morning and authorities are examining her medical history, Winter said.
He added that Murphy's family is co-operating with the coroner's investigation, and an autopsy is planned for Monday or Tuesday.
The young actress is perhaps best known for her roles in "Sin City," "Girl, Interrupted," "Clueless," "8 Mile," and voicing a character in the animated penguin tale "Happy Feet."
She told The Associated Press in 2003 that "8 Mile" gave her widespread recognition.
"That changed a lot," she said. "That was the difference between people knowing my first and last name as opposed to not."
Three of her movies, including "The Expendables" starring Sylvester Stallone, are in post-production.
Despite those films, there had been reports Murphy's career had hit some obstacles this year.
Earlier this month, a publicist for Murphy denied she was fired from the set of the film "The Caller." She was replaced by former "Twilight" actress Rachelle Lefevre.
Less than an hour after news of her death became public, the search term "RIP Brittany Murphy" was already the second most popular topic on Twitter.
"To have such a tragic ending like this really took a lot of people by surprise," David Caplan, an editor at People magazine, told CTV News Channel. "There were no known public woes that she was openly facing."
Last month, her husband was hospitalized after he experienced a medical condition on a plane that landed at Los Angeles International Airport.
Murphy was born Nov. 10, 1977 in Atlanta, but grew up in New Jersey. She moved to Los Angeles with her mother, hoping to gain success as an actress.
"When I asked my mom to move to California, she sold everything and moved out here for me," she told AP. "I was really grateful to have grown up in an environment that was conducive to creating and didn't stifle any of that. She always believed in me."
In 2003, she co-starred with Ashton Kutcher in the romantic comedy "Just Married," and the two were involved in a relationship.
On Sunday, Kutcher wrote a message of condolence on his Twitter feed: "2day the world lost a little piece of sunshine. My deepest condolences go out 2 Brittany's family, her husband, & her amazing mother Sharon."
He continued: "see you on the other side kid."
With files from The Associated Press
