Jonshel Alexander, famous for her role in Beasts of the Southern Wild, was shot dead in her hometown of New Orleans last Saturday. The child actor from the Oscar-nominated film was 22, and her untimely loss has struck her family and co-stars hard.

According to sources, she had a male companion with her in the car when the drive-by shooting happened. Although his name has not been released, it is known that he was wounded in the incident. According to NBC12, police are already in search of a suspect, who is believed to have been driving a red truck at the time of the incident.

Alexander's passing has struck her Beasts of the Southern Wild co-stars badly, especially since her character Joy Strong in the film was greatly inspired by her. Beasts of the Southern Wild is a low-budget yet visually stunning surrealist film that tells the story of a father and daughter living in a mythical area of Louisiana known as “The Bathtub” that is threatened by the disappearing coastline.

The official synopsis for Beasts of the Southern Wild reads, "Six-year-old Hushpuppy (Quvenzhané Wallis) lives with her father, Wink (Dwight Henry), in a remote Delta community. Wink is a stern taskmaster, but he is preparing his young daughter for the end of the world. When Wink falls mysteriously ill, nature seems to fall ill with him. Temperatures rise, the ice caps melt and fearsome prehistoric beasts called aurochs run loose. Rising waters threaten to engulf their community, sending Hushpuppy in search of her long-lost mother."

Jonshel auditioned for the lead role of Hushpuppy but was too old (she was 12 at the time) to land it. Eventually, the role of Hushpuppy went to Quvenzhané Wallis, who earned an Oscar nomination for her portrayal. However, Jonshel impressed the director, Benh Zeitlin, enough to consider writing a character around her in the film.

"We incorporated a part into the film that was very much inspired by her... A lot of the lines were written by her, and so much of the character grew out of who Jonshel was. Her character in the film is named Joy Strong, which always seemed like a perfect description of Jonshel."

The film itself went on to earn Oscar nominations for Best Picture and three other categories. Jonshel's co-star from the film, Dwight Henry, had this to say after the tragic incident, and it looks like there are many who feel the same way:

"She lit up the screen, and it hurts me. I’m telling you it hurts me to my heart. When I think about I’ve been crying all night."

Jonshel's personal life was not a very well-known one after Beasts. She went from being a child actor to a young mom and worked as a hostess in restaurants after high school.

In a conversation with NOLA.com, her mother Shelly Alexander said:

"She brought life to everything... Jonshel was feisty, jazzy, spoiled. It was her way or no way."

The 22-year old actress is survived by her mother and her one-year-old daughter. We send our condolences out to them at this painful time. May she rest in peace. This news comes to us from Deadline.