Bray Wyatt: WWE champion dies aged 36
Three-time WWE world champion Bray Wyatt has died at the age of 36.
The wrestler had been dealing with an undisclosed health issue that had kept him out of the ring since February, but his death was characterised as sudden by his family.
The news was announced by WWE content officer Triple H, who posted on social media that Wyatt, real name Windham Rotunda, had "unexpectedly passed".
Dwayne Johnson, aka The Rock, was among those paying tribute to the star.
Writing on X, formerly Twitter, Johnson said he was "heartbroken" and had "always had tremendous respect and love" for the wrestler.
"Loved his presence, promos, in ring work and connection with @WWE universe," he wrote. "Very unique, cool and rare character, which is hard to create in our crazy world of pro wrestling."
WWE commentator Mick Foley added: "I thought so highly of Bray Wyatt... He was a true visionary; one of the most compelling presences that wrestling has ever seen."
Wyatt came from a family of wrestlers, including his grandfather Blackjack Mulligan, his father Mike Rotunda and his younger brother Bo Dallas.
Rotunda was a famous wrestling legend in his own right, known as IRS due to his gimmick as being a tax collector from Washington DC who harassed wrestlers and fans as "tax cheats".
Born in Brooksville, Florida on 23 May, 1987, Wyatt was a state wrestling champion in high school and earned a football scholarship to Troy University.
However, he left his course before graduating to become a professional wrestler, making his professional debut in 2009.