WWE superstar Bray Wyatt, whose real name was Windham Rotunda, died Thursday at 36, according to the company.
“WWE is saddened to learn that Windham Rotunda, also known as Bray Wyatt, passed away on Thursday, Aug. 24, at age 36,” the company said in a statement.
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“Known for his captivating performances and incredible in-ring presence, Wyatt was a defining Superstar of his generation and accomplished many feats in WWE, including becoming WWE Champion in 2017,” the WWE said.
According to ESPN, Rotunda had been inactive over the past several months in WWE while dealing with an undisclosed health issue.
He had been with WWE since 2009 and was surprisingly released in 2022.
Rotunda returned to WWE last September with much fanfare and a mysterious storyline, including cryptic vignettes, which helped boost television ratings.
Rotunda was a two-time former WWE Universal champion and former WWE champion.
WWE Chief Content Officer Paul ‘Triple H” Levesque also shared the news of Rotunda’s death on X, formerly known as Twitter.
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. Our thoughts are with his family and we ask that everyone respect their…
— Triple H (@TripleH) August 24, 2023
Sean Ross Sapp, of Fightful.com, shared information in a post on X on the circumstances that led to Wyatt’s death, which you can read below.
I was given permission to reveal that earlier this year Windham Rotunda (Bray Wyatt) got COVID that exacerbated a heart issues.
— Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com (@SeanRossSapp) August 25, 2023
There was a lot of positive progress towards a return and his recovery. Unfortunately today he suffered a heart attack and passed away.
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson also posted his condolences on X to the Rotunda family and shared his perspective on what made Rotunda unique in sports entertainment.
Im heartbroken over the news of Bray Wyatt’s passing. Always had tremendous respect and love for him and the Rotunda family. Loved his presence, promos, in ring work and connection with @wwe universe.
— Dwayne Johnson (@TheRock) August 24, 2023
Very unique, cool and rare character, which is hard to create in our crazy… pic.twitter.com/i9zlbJIOL3
Rotunda was married to former WWE ring announcer JoJo Offerman. They had two children and Rotunda had two other children from a previous marriage.