New Delhi, Dec. 13 -- The disappearance of Joe Pichler, nearly two decades after he vanished without a trace, remains one of Hollywood's most haunting unsolved mysteries.

A former child actor who appeared in major studio films in the 1990s and early 2000s, Pichler disappeared in January 2006 at the age of 18 from his hometown of Bremerton, Washington. Once seen as a rising talent, his unexplained disappearance transformed a Hollywood success story into a lasting mystery, leaving behind one unanswered question: what really happened to Joe Pichler?

Born in the late 1980s, Pichler began acting as a child and landed his breakthrough role in 1996's The Fan, starring alongside Robert De Niro and Wesley Snipes. He later appeared in Varsity Blu...