Performer and trans activist Alexis Arquette dead at 47

Alexis Arquette -- actor and transgender activist -- died Sunday at the age of 47 after battling an undisclosed illness.

Entertainment Tonight reported that Arquette -- whose siblings include Patricia Arquette, David Arquette and Rosanna Arquette -- passed away surrounded by family and friends after midnight Saturday.

Arquette acted in TV and films -- notably in Pulp Fiction and The Wedding Singer -- and transitioned from living as Robert Arquette to Alexis after coming out as transgender.

However, in recent years, the performer said that she prefers to think of herself as gender fluid.

"She was like, 'Yeah, sometimes I'll be a man, sometimes I'll be a woman. I like to refer to myself as gender suspicious,'" said Alexis' brother David, star of the Scream horror franchise and other films.

Sister Patricia Arquette marked Alexis' passing on Twitter by writing, "Breaking through the veil singing 'Starman,'" the David Bowie song, which was reportedly playing during the actor's last moments of life.

Brother Richmond Arquette wrote on Facebook, "Our brother Robert, who became our sister Alexis, who became our brother Alexis, passed this morning September 11, at 12:32 am. He was surrounded by all of his brothers and sisters, one of his nieces and several other loved ones."

"I am feeling immense gratitude to have been afforded the luxury of sharing life with him/her, for learning from Alexis, for being given the gift of being able to love her/him and to be loved by him/her. He was a force," Richmond said. "He died as he lived, on his own terms. I am immensely grateful that it was fast and painless. It was an incredibly moving experience and I am humbled and grateful to have been with him as he began his journey onward. Thank you, Alexis, I love you and will love you always."