5 shocking WWE deaths

1. Bruiser Brody

Frank Donald Goodish, born June 18th, 1946. Was an American professional wrestler, he went under the ring names of Bruiser Brody, King Kong Brody, the Masked Marauder and Red River Jack. Brody worked for many companies throughout his career such as World Class Championship Wrestling (WCCW), World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF) and regularly worked in Japan for All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW). He was a predecessor of the hardcore wrestlers who would come to follow him in the 1990s, he inspired many wrestling stars to follow his style of wrestling.

During his final days in Puerto Rico where he was scheduled to have a match against Dan Spivey. Brody was engaged in an argument with professional wrestler and booker Jose Huertas Gonzalez. Whilst their was no witnesses to the dispute, a wrestler Tony Atlas claimed he had heard screams from the showers where the two had been arguing, allegedly Tony ran to the showers where he has seen Brody clutching his stomach whilst Gonzalez was holding a knife.

Unfortunately Brody passed hours later, gonzalez was ultimately acquitted of murder - claiming self-defence.

2. Owen Hart

Considered to be one of the most influential and gifted wrestlers of the Hart Family, some fans believe if it wasn’t for his untimely death, Bret Hart might not have become the biggest name from the Hart Family.

During a pay-per-view in 1999, Hart tragically fell from a height of 78ft whilst making his entrance. The equipment that was used to lower him into the ring malfunctioned he fell to his death in front of a live audience and live on Pay Per View. The show went on despite his death although later the company gave a two-hour tribute and the storyline was paused to pay Homage to Hart.

3. Shad Gaspard

Gaspard was a member of the WWE Universe, best known as one-half of the duo Cryme Tyme with wrestler JTG. Before being a WWE star he played basketball at Georgia Perimeter College and he was a former bodyguard for P. Diddy, Britney Spears and Mike Tyson.

Gaspard wasn’t just a hero on the screen but was no stranger to good deeds, in 2016, he broke up an armed robbery in Coral Springs. He was able to pin the suspect to the ground until police arrived on scene.

Whilst on Venice Beach swimming on 17th of May 2020, Gaspard got caught up in a rip tide with his 10 year old son, Gaspard urged lifeguards to prioritise his son and get him to safety on shore. During this time Gaspard got swept underwater, unfortunately his body was found almost three days later the incident.

In his final moments, he bravely chose to save his son. That’s love of a father.

4. Chyna

Joanie Laurer, commonly known as Chyna was dubbed as the “Ninth Wonder of the World” when she first hit the professional wrestling scene in the late 1990s. She went from college student to Professional Wrestler under watchful eye of bodybuilding icon Killer Kowalski and was quickly starting to show her potential. It wasn’t long before idustry giants had their eyes on Laurer.

Eventually she joined WWE where she joined forces with Shawn Michaels and Triple H, from 1997 to 2001 Laurer dominated and had multiple titles under her belt. Laurer became the first women to participate in the Royal Rumble, she had also held the Women’s Championship and the only women to hold the intercontinental championship.

During this time the champion was juggling her career and her personal struggles and has been in a relationship with wrestler Triple H but was left heartbroken when it was discovered Triple was also dating Stephanie McMahon - this led to a heated fight on discovery and lead to Laurer being fired for WWE.

Laurer began dating Sean Waltman, it is alleged Triple H had warned Waltman about Laurer, however in 2004 the couple has a released a sex tape called “One Night In China”. This earned the pair around £78,000 each, after the debut into the adult entertainment world she would go to be featured in four adult films - the final in 2012.

Following the initial sex tape scandals, Laurer developed a struggle with alcohol and her struggles were splashed across media. On December 27, 2008, Laurer attempted suicide following her birthday party, She attempted again in September 2010 by overdosing on medication.

After this appeared to be a turning point for Laurer and appeared to be trying to improve her physical and mental health. In 2012 Laurer moved to Japan to teach English although moved back to America in 2015, in November of that year she was booked for public intoxication.

It is said once media had caught the news, Triple H agreed to pay for Laurer’s Rehab costs after discussing with Ex Walterman. Laurer’s manager declined the offer of her behalf as she developed a paranoia about WWE.

Unfortunately, just a year later, April 20, 2016, Laurer was tragically found dead in her California home, aged 46. Causes were an accidental overdose, autopsy revealed Laurer died as a result of mixing alcohol, prescription drugs, painkillers and sleeping pills.

Following her death. WWE fans called for her to be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame, this lead to discussions due to her adult entertainment status and her addictions.

In 2019, WWE inducted Laurer as part of the Degeneration- stable along with Shawn Michaels and Triple H.

5. Bray Wyatt

It’s hard to make this list without including a recently lost treasure. Bray Wyatt, real name Windham Rotunda was a three-time world champion and two-time tag-team champion in WWE. He debuted in 2009. Wyatt was known for his performances of darker, supernatural nature.

The wrestling world was taken back in August 2023 after it was announced Bray Wyatt had passed away. Wyatt had been dealing with health problems which kept him out of the ring since February 2023, doctors advised Wyatt to continue to wear a. External heart defibrillator which is a device designed to treat people experiencing sudden cardiac arrest, officials revealed Wyatt was not wearing the device when he passed and later found it in his car.

It was later revealed Wyatt reportedly told his fiancée he was going to take a nap, she became increasingly worried once she had heard his alarm going off for more than an hour. His fiancée called 911 while her mother attempted CPR when finding him in bed not breathing and turning blue.