March 19, 1970 ~ April 4, 2019

Handsome, hilarious, and incredibly kind, Scott Watters died of cancer Friday, April 4, 2019 at his home in Los Angeles. He was surrounded by his devoted family and friends: his adored and loving mother Sandy Watters, his beloved brother Bill Watters (who called his little brother “Scooter”), and his sweet nephews Jack, Kai, and Dax, all of whom lovingly supported him through a series of illnesses.

Everyone who met Scott was struck by his energy and sense of humor. Scott's first response to almost everything was a burst of laughter; a delightfully husky laugh he inherited from his mom, who was also one of his best friends.

Scott was born in Redwood City, California on March 19, 1970 to parents Sandy (Morris) Watters and Gerald Watters. Scott grew up in Truckee, California where he became a world-class freestyle skier while only in middle school. More than just a talented athlete, Scott was also a gifted performer and starred in many of his high school and local theater productions before moving to Los Angeles to pursue acting as a career.

It was in LA that he found a new universe of loving, kind, and funny best friends/family, including Ben Stilp, Stacy D'fer, and Tom Pardoe. After testing positive for HIV in the early 1990s, Scott became an educator about the disease and traveled the state speaking to high school students with his unique brand of humor and straight talk. Scott loved wild dancing, loud music, fast cars, and impossibly cute animals. He rescued most of them from shelters, including his beloved cats Whitney and Houston, his family’s golden retrievers Scoi and Cody, and his treasured dogs Deepak and Chopra.

Scott had a vast family of people who loved him, many from his longtime West Hollywood AA community. Several of these special friends visited in his final days to thank him for saving their lives when they struggled with addiction and homelessness. Scott led a rich and meaningful life defined by love, friendship, and a talent for seeing the humor in everything, even cancer. In the last week of his life he hosted a party and secretly ordered a cake with the message: Cancer Sucks! for his guests’ enjoyment. That was Scott Watters.

Scott is survived by his brother Bill Watters, mother Sandy Watters, father Gerald Watters, uncle and aunt Ron and Peggy Morris, and cousins Kevin and Casey Morris, whom he adored along with their wives Julia and Maili.

Although he left us much too soon, few people have ever packed as much joy and love into long lives as Scott did in just 49 years. A talent for seeing the humor and beauty in everything came naturally to him, even in his most difficult days. In the hearts and memories of his family and everyone lucky enough to know him, Scott's laughter and loving spirit live on. 

A memorial service will be held in Los Angeles in June.