Joe Pichler
“I’m going to be there one day, Mom.” Joe Pichler said that as a kid while watching the Academy Awards—then spent his childhood doing the work to make it real. He booked commercials, TV roles, and movies, including playing James Van Der Beek’s younger brother in Varsity Blues. And even after returning to his hometown of Bremerton, Washington to finish high school, Joe was still making plans for what came next.
But in the early morning hours of January 5, 2006, Joe made a phone call to a friend… and then he disappeared.
From rising star to “normal life” back home
Joe’s early success in Hollywood was real—and it came fast. But as he grew into a teenager, his mother, Kathy, worried about the pressures and pitfalls that come with being a child actor. So Joe moved back to Washington to finish high school in a more “normal” environment, with the understanding that Hollywood could still be waiting for him afterward.
By 2005, he’d graduated, moved into his own apartment in Bremerton, and was working a full-time customer service job—even though he had access to money from his acting work. He had plans, he had independence, and according to the people closest to him, he didn’t seem like someone who was preparing to vanish.
The night he disappeared
What’s consistently reported is this: Joe spent the night with friends—drinking, hanging out, and possibly playing Magic: The Gathering, which he loved. In the early morning hours, he made a phone call to a male friend. After that, no one is known to have heard from him again.
The problem is what comes next: the timeline gets murky, details conflict depending on the source, and many of the “internet-era” accounts trace back to now-inaccessible posts and secondhand retellings.
The car—and the conclusion police leaned on
Days later, Joe’s silver 2005 Toyota Corolla was found parked behind a taqueria in Bremerton. His phone was inside. His wallet and keys were not. And investigators described a note and writings in the car as suggesting he “may be planning to attempt suicide.”
That framing shaped how Joe’s case was treated from the beginning—and it’s a big reason many people think this story starts and ends with one word: suicide.
But Joe’s family has been publicly challenging that narrative for nearly two decades. They argue there were missed opportunities early on, overlooked evidence, and unanswered questions that never got the attention they deserved—especially for a young man who was, at one point, directly connected to mainstream fame.
Why this case still matters
Joe’s body has never been found. The writings found in his car have been interpreted in different ways. And the way this case unfolded in the first days and weeks left his family feeling like the investigation narrowed too quickly—and stayed there.
In our full episode, we walk through what’s confirmed, what’s disputed, and why this disappearance remains so difficult to neatly categorize—even 20 years later.
Missing Person: Joe Pichler
Joe Pichler has been missing from Bremerton, Washington since January 5, 2006. He is a white male with light brown hair and hazel/green eyes. At the time of his disappearance, he was approximately 6’2” and 170 pounds, had metal braces on his top teeth, and a circular red Star Wars emblem tattoo on the inside of his right forearm.
If you have information, contact the Bremerton Police Department at 1-360-308-5400.
Sources:
https://websleuths.com/threads/wa-joseph-pichler-18-bremerton-5-jan-2006-child-actor-2.61494/post-2854859
https://www.heraldnet.com/news/missing-actor-may-have-left-a-note/
https://archive.seattletimes.com/archive/20060117/missingactor17m/former-child-movie-actor-joe-pichler-missing-for-a-week
https://www.seattlepi.com/seattlenews/article/former-child-actor-missing-1192897.php
https://www.spcoalition.org/pichler.html
https://www.thecoldcases.com/p/the-vanishing-of-joe-pichler-the
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