WWE wrestler Bray Wyatt has died at the age of 36, WWE Chief Content Officer Paul "Triple A" Levesque shared Thursday.
Wyatt, 36, had been dealing with an unknown illness and had not been on television since February.
The wrestling star came from a long line of WWE performers. https://t.co/vTjhzBmpom
— HuffPost (@HuffPost) August 25, 2023
“Just received a call from WWE Hall of Famer Mike Rotunda who informed us of the tragic news that our WWE family member for life Windham Rotunda – also known as Bray Wyatt – unexpectedly passed earlier today,” Levesque tweeted Thursday evening.
“Our thoughts are with his family and we ask that everyone respect their privacy at this time.”
Former WWE champion Bray Wyatt dead unexpectedly at 36 https://t.co/D1AGZHSjs1 pic.twitter.com/Ca08hFxJPx
— New York Post (@nypost) August 24, 2023
“Im heartbroken over the news of Bray Wyatt’s passing,” Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
“Always had tremendous respect and love for him and the Rotunda family. Loved his presence, promos, in ring work and connection with @wwe universe. Very unique, cool and rare character, which is hard to create in our crazy world of pro wrestling. Still processing losing the goat, Terry Funk yesterday and now Bray today," he added.
Still cannot believe this wonder man is gonehttps://t.co/ENA7CFtw2l
— King Kariq💯 (@AkeemWitDaSauce) August 25, 2023
Wyatt "worked in WWE from 2009 to 2021, when he was released. He returned to the company a year later, to much fanfare, at the Extreme Rules premium live event, where he began performing an intricate storyline involving a character called Uncle Howdy (portrayed by his brother, former WWE star Bo Dallas) and Alexa Bliss," Wrestling Inc. wrote.
"The story was apparently tabled, however, following Rotunda's match with LA Knight at the 2023 Royal Rumble," it added.
Wyatt was a third-generation wrestler, coming from a family long in the business. He won the WWE Championship, Universal Championship and two tag team championships during his career.
His cause of death was not revealed. However, at least one person commenting on his death referred to this passing due to a heart attack. Wyatt had reportedly experienced a bout with Covid earlier in the year as well.
The loss of Wyatt is a shock for the WWE family where he had grown up on the screen alongside other wrestlers for more than a decade. His passing is also mourned by many fans who will miss his presence on the screen as one of the WWE's top characters.
