Julian Sands's official cause of death announced

Julian Sands's cause of death will be listed as "undetermined" on his final death certificate.

Mara Rodriguez, public information officer with the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department in California, tells Yahoo Entertainment that the scenario is a common one when the department is investigating a case like that of Sands.

The A Room With a View actor was confirmed dead late last month, after having gone missing in January, while hiking in the San Gabriel Mountains outside of Los Angeles. The experienced hiker was last seen Jan. 13 on Mt. Baldy, which was experiencing intense snow and wind during a winter storm. When he and another hiker went missing around the same time, rescue teams went in to find them, but even they had to give up their mission because of the treacherous conditions, including the risk of an avalanche. Helicopters and drones were sent in to continue their work. Then, awful news.

"On Saturday, June 24, 2023, at about 10 a.m., civilian hikers contacted the Fontana Sheriff's Station after they discovered human remains in the Mt. Baldy wilderness," a statement from the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Coroner Department read. "Fontana Station deputies, along with the Sheriff's Department's Emergency Operations Division, responded to the scene." It continued that the coroner subsequently "positively identified [the remains] as 65-year-old Julian Sands of North Hollywood. The manner of death is still under investigation, pending further test results."

Sands was known for his turns in movies including The Killing Fields; Leaving Las Vegas; Warlock; Arachnophobia; and The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. On TV, he appeared in shows such as Smallville, Lipstick Jungle and 24. He was 65.