Bray Wyatt facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Bray Wyatt |
|
|---|---|
Wyatt in 2017
|
|
| Birth name | Windham Lawrence Rotunda |
| Born | May 23, 1987 Brooksville, Florida, U.S. |
| Died | August 24, 2023 (aged 36) |
| Cause of death | Heart attack |
| Spouse(s) |
Samantha Rotunda
(m. 2012; div. 2017) |
| Partner | JoJo (2017–2023; his death) |
| Children | 4 |
| Parent(s) | Mike Rotunda (father) |
| Relatives |
|
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) |
|
| Billed height | 6 ft 3 in (191 cm) |
| Billed weight | 285 lb (129 kg) |
| Billed from |
|
| Trained by |
|
| Debut | February 5, 2009 |
Windham Lawrence Rotunda (May 23, 1987 – August 24, 2023) was an American professional wrestler. He was best known for his tenures in WWE from 2010 to 2021, and then again from 2022 until his death in 2023, where he performed under the ring name Bray Wyatt.
Rotunda was a third-generation professional wrestler, following in the footsteps of his grandfather Blackjack Mulligan, his father Mike Rotunda, and two of his uncles – Barry and Kendall Windham. His younger brother Taylor Rotunda is also a professional wrestler, best known as Bo Dallas. Alongside his brother, he held the FCW Florida Tag Team Championship twice while in WWE's then–developmental territory Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW), where he wrestled under various ring names between 2008 and 2012. He briefly wrestled on WWE's main roster from 2010 to 2011 under the ring name Husky Harris, most notably as a member of The Nexus.
After returning to WWE's developmental territory, which had been rebranded as NXT, Rotunda was repackaged as Bray Wyatt. Portrayed as the villainous leader of The Wyatt Family, a bayou-dwelling cult, he returned to the main roster alongside Wyatt Family members Luke Harper and Erick Rowan in 2013. He subsequently became a three-time world champion in WWE, holding the WWE Championship once and the Universal Championship twice. He also held the SmackDown Tag Team Championship (with Luke Harper and Randy Orton under the Freebird Rule) and the Raw Tag Team Championship (with Matt Hardy) once each.
After a hiatus from August 2018 to April 2019, Wyatt returned with a new gimmick. Portrayed as suffering from a transformative multiple personality disorder, he randomly switched back and forth between two characters: his "good side" of Bray Wyatt, a Mr. Rogers–esque children's TV host, and his bad side of The Fiend, a grotesque horror-themed monster clown. He was released from WWE in July 2021 but returned at Extreme Rules in October 2022, with a new character that claimed to be his "real-life" self but gradually re-incorporated his multiple personalities in addition to some new ones. His second return would be cut short as after taking time off beginning in February 2023 due to contracting COVID-19, he unexpectedly died of a heart attack that August. During his second return, he only had one televised match, which was at the 2023 Royal Rumble.
Contents
Early life
Windham had a younger brother Taylor, who's also a wrestler, where he performed under the ring name Bo Dallas, he's best known for his time in the WWE from 2008-2021.
Windham Lawrence Rotunda was born in Brooksville, Florida, on May 23, 1987. He attended Hernando High School, where he won a state wrestling championship at 275 pounds (125 kg) in 2005, the year of his graduation. He also played football as a defensive tackle and guard. Rotunda played at the College of the Sequoias for two seasons, earning second-team All-American honors as a sophomore offensive guard at the California junior college. He earned a football scholarship to Troy University, where he played college football for two years. He left Troy 27 credit hours short of earning a bachelor's degree after deciding to become a professional wrestler.
Other media
Rotunda made his video game debut in WWE '12 (as Husky Harris) and later returned, as Bray Wyatt, in WWE 2K15, WWE 2K16, WWE 2K17, WWE 2K18, and WWE 2K19. His alternate persona The Fiend was a pre-order bonus for WWE 2K20. The current persona of Wyatt has been released as downloadable content in WWE 2K23.
Personal life
Rotunda and his ex-wife, Samantha, married in 2012 and had two daughters together before she filed for divorce in 2017. Rotunda and WWE announcer JoJo were revealed to be together during this time. They later had a son (born May 2019), whose godfather is wrestler Braun Strowman, and a daughter (born May 2020). They became engaged in 2022.
Death
Rotunda died of a heart attack on August 24, 2023, at the age of 36. His death was announced by WWE chief content officer Triple H on X. Prior to his death, Rotunda had been dealing with an undisclosed illness since February, which was reportedly life-threatening. According to reports just days before his death, he had been making positive progress towards recovery. Shortly after his death, it was revealed that the illness was COVID-19, which had exacerbated a pre-existing heart condition.
Following Triple H's announcement, several of Rotunda's peers paid tribute to him on social media. Promotions such as Impact Wrestling, New Japan Pro Wrestling, and All Elite Wrestling (AEW) issued statements on his death and legacy. WWE plans to donate all of the net proceeds from Rotunda's merchandise sales to his family. The August 25, 2023, episode of SmackDown honored Rotunda and Terry Funk, who had died one day prior, by airing tributes and behind-the-scenes footage.
Championships and accomplishments
- CBS Sports
- Comeback Wrestler of the Year (2019)
- Florida Championship Wrestling
- FCW Florida Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Bo Rotundo
- New York Post
- Best Return (2022) – at Extreme Rules
- Pro Wrestling Illustrated
- WrestleCrap
- Gooker Award (2019) vs. Seth Rollins at Hell in a Cell
- Wrestling Observer Newsletter
- Best Gimmick (2013) as part of The Wyatt Family
- Best Gimmick (2019) as "The Fiend"
- Most Overrated (2020)
- Worst Gimmick (2017) as Sister Abigail
- Worst Gimmick (2020) as "The Fiend"
- Worst Feud of the Year (2017) vs. Randy Orton
- Worst Feud of the Year (2019) vs. Seth Rollins
- Worst Feud of the Year (2020) vs. Braun Strowman
- Worst Feud of the Year (2021) with Alexa Bliss vs. Randy Orton
- Worst Worked Match of the Year (2014) vs. John Cena at Extreme Rules
- Worst Worked Match of the Year (2017) vs. Randy Orton at WrestleMania 33
- Worst Match of the Year (2019) vs. Seth Rollins at Hell in a Cell
- Worst Match of the Year (2020) vs. Braun Strowman at The Horror Show at Extreme Rules
- WWE
- WWE Championship (1 time)
- WWE Universal Championship (2 times)
- WWE Raw Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Matt Hardy
- WWE SmackDown Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Randy Orton and Luke Harper
- Tag Team Eliminator (2018) – with Matt Hardy
- WWE Year-End Award for Male Wrestler of the Year (2019)
Images for kids
-
Rotunda as Husky Harris during his tenure as part of The Nexus in November 2010
-
Harris (left) with David Otunga (center) and Heath Slater (right) as part of The Nexus in December 2010
-
Bray Wyatt and Luke Harper at an NXT event in October 2012
-
The Wyatt Family at WrestleMania XXX, with Wyatt (center) sitting on the top turnbuckle
-
Wyatt facing off against John Cena at WrestleMania XXX in April 2014
-
Wyatt's entrance at WrestleMania 31
-
The Wyatt Family confronts The Rock at WrestleMania 32.
-
The "New" Wyatt Family as SmackDown Tag Team Champions: (from left to right) Luke Harper, Bray Wyatt and Randy Orton
-
Wyatt and Matt Hardy at WrestleMania 34
-
Wyatt setting up his "Sister Abigail" finishing move on Big E
See also
In Spanish: Bray Wyatt para niños
- List of premature professional wrestling deaths
