Christian Cousins cause of death: Former child star in Arnold Schwarzenegger's ‘Kindergarten Cop’ dies at 43

Former child star Christian Cousins died on October 20 at the age of 43. He was best known for his roles in Kindergarten Cop and Knots Landing. His half-brother, Jonas Roeser, announced his death in an Instagram post on October 22. "It’s hard to share that my brother, Christian Cousins, has passed away," Jonas wrote.

Roeser also shared details about Christian's health struggles and remembered him as a passionate person with big dreams.

"Christian and his twin brother, Joseph “Joey” Cousins, are my brothers through my biological father. They grew up in California while I was in Washington and I didn’t get to know them until I was in college. Before that, I grew up watching them on television in Knots Landing and the lead role of Dominic in Kindergarten Cop with Arnold Schwarzenegger. But those roles are only a small part of how I’ll remember Christian. He was a character, full of passion and energy, with big stories and even bigger dreams," Jonas added.

Christian Cousins' cause of death: What happened to him?

In his tribute, Roeser confirmed that Christian had been suffering from liver disease. “It’s hard to share that my brother, Christian Cousins, has passed away. Christian had been very sick with liver disease. It brings me comfort to believe he is now in heaven with his mother, free from the pain he was carrying. Rest easy, Christian,” he wrote.

No further details about the nature of Christian's liver disease or the circumstances surrounding his death were shared.

Christian Cousins' acting career with twin brother Joey

Christian Cousins, born in March 1983, began his acting career alongside his identical twin brother, Joseph “Joey” Cousins. The brothers gained recognition for their appearances in the television series Knots Landing, where they featured between 1987 and 1993. In 1990, the twins jointly played Dominic Palmieri in the hit film Kindergarten Cop, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. Their performance in the comedy helped establish them as familiar faces among child actors of the time.

Christian and Joey shared the role of Dominic Palmieri in Kindergarten Cop. The film used a dual-casting technique, commonly employed in productions involving young children to comply with child labour regulations.

The Kindergarten Cop cast reunited virtually in December 2020 in an event organised by Yahoo Entertainment. Schwarzenegger surprised the cast during the reunion and spoke about the lasting bond they had developed while making the film. “It is the funniest thing to see all of you guys,” Schwarzenegger said.

As reported by TMZ, during a 2020 reunion, Christian recalled how the brothers landed the role. “They had seen some previous work we’d done, met with Ivan Reitman and Arnold right off the bat and got it. But then when they did a bunch of major major interviews with a lot of kids, they still invited us to go to each one because they were also seeing how we all interact together interestingly enough,” he said.

Apart from Kindergarten Cop, the brothers appeared in nearly 60 episodes of Knots Landing. Their other film credits included Critters 3 (1991), Intruders (1992) and Twin Sitters (1994).

After several years in the entertainment industry, Christian and Joey retired from acting in 1995.

What did Christian Cousins do after acting?

After leaving Hollywood, Christian pursued business ventures outside the entertainment industry, according to a report of People. During the 2020 reunion, he revealed that he was working as an executive at a furniture company and was also a co-owner of a CBD business.

Despite stepping away from acting, Christian fondly remembered his experiences on the sets of Kindergarten Cop. During the reunion, he jokingly told Schwarzenegger, “By the way, after 30 years I want to thank you again for saving my life from Richard Tyson in the locker room,” referring to an on-screen experience from the film.

Meanwhile, remembering his brother, Roeser concluded his tribute with an emotional message: “I hope your soul is at rest and that you’ve found peace. You are my brother and you will be missed.”