The Dark Side of Reality TV: 27 Tragic Deaths

Publish date: 2024-05-22

Eric Hill
Eric Hill — who was a competitor on the 10th season of ABC's The Bachelorette debuting in May 2014 — suffered critical injuries April 20, 2014, while paragliding in Utah after his parachute collapsed. He went into a coma and was taken a hospital where he died three days later.
Gia Allemand of ‘The Bachelor’
The Bachelor cast member Gia Allmand died tragically in August 2013 at age 29 "following an apparent suicide attempt," a statement from her family read. The former model, who appeared both on Jake Pavelka's season and then on two seasons of Bachelor Pad, was dating NBA Pelicans player Ryan Anderson, who held vigil by her bedside where she lay on life support.
Shain Gandee of ‘Buckwild’
Shain Gandee, the 21-year-old star of MTV's Buckwild was discovered dead, along with his uncle and one other person, in a car found in a remote area of Sissonville, West Virginia, on April 1, 2013. The show was in production on its second season.
Joey Kovar of ‘The Real World: Hollywood’
A native of Evergreen Park, Ill., Joey Kovar was scouted on a Chicago street and cast in MTV's The Real World: Hollywood, where he battled drug and alcohol addiction until he was eventually asked to leave the series. Kovar later appeared on VH1's Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew. Kovar died in Aug. 2012 at the age of 29; an autopsy revealed that he succumbed to "opiate intoxication."
Russell Armstrong of ‘Real Housewives of Beverly Hills’
The ex-husband of Bravo's Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Taylor Armstrong, Russell Armstrong was discovered on Aug. 15, 2011, hanging from an orange extension cord tied to a wooden beam in the bedroom of his home on Mullholland Drive. Armstrong was deeply in debt at the time of his death, and allegations of spousal abuse were about to hit the tabloids.
Mark Balelo of ‘Storage Wars’
Mark Balelo, a 40-year-old auctioneer featured on A&E's Storage Wars, died Feb. 2013, the victim of what the Ventura County Medical Examiner's Office said was "asphyxiation from carbon monoxide and exhaust fumes." His body was discovered in a car parked in a garage at his Simi Valley auction house, days after he was arrested on charges of methamphetamine possession.
Mindy McCready of ‘Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew’
Country star Mindy McCready appeared on Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew in 2009, in which her struggles with addiction were documented. The singer committed suicide in Feb. 2013, her body discovered on her front porch — the same place where David Wilson, the father of her young son, had killed himself one month before. She also shot Wilson's dog.
Cheryl Kosewicz of ‘Pirate Master’
CBS' short-lived, pirate-themed reality show Pirate Master resulted in tragedy when Cheryl Kosewicz, a 35-year-old deputy district attorney from Nevada, committed suicide after being eliminated from the series. Kosewicz, whose boyfriend killed himself two months before her death, had complained on MySpace about how the show had adversely affected her life.
Corey Haim of ‘The Two Coreys’
In 2010, two years after Corey Haim had starred opposite lifelong friend Corey Feldman on A&E reality series The Two Coreys, Haim died suddenly at age 38, while living with his mother at the Oakwood Apartments in Burbank. At first the cause of death was thought to be an accidental drug overdose, but the Los Angeles County Coroner's Office later ruled that Haim's death was due to pneumonia.
Phil Harris of ‘Deadliest Catch’
Sea captain Phil Harris, the star of Discovery Channel's Deadliest Catch, died in Feb. 2010 at age 53, after suffering a massive stroke while unloading a haul of crab in Alaska. The death was featured on the series, followed by a special tribute episode.
Gabriel Ben-Meir of MTV
Gabriel Ben-Meir, a 30-year-old music coordinator for MTV who worked on Punk'd and other shows for the network, was shot to death outside his home in L.A.'s mid-Wilshire district in May 2011. Two suspects, Jabaar Vincent Thomas and Destiny Young, were later charged with second-degree murder. The motive, according to authorities: robbery.
Jenni Rivera of ‘I Love Jenni’
Mexican-American singer Jenni Rivera had been involved in several Spanish-language reality shows, and was starring in I Love Jenni on Mun2 when she was killed in a private plane crash that took the lives of seven people after it took off from Monterrey, Mexico, in Dec. 2012.
Ashley ‘A.J.’ Jewell of ‘Real Housewives of Atlanta’
A.J. Jewell, the fiance of Real Housewives of Atlanta star Kandi Burruss, was fatally shot during a brawl at an Atlanta nightclub in Dec. 2009. Burruss, a successful songwriter and producer behind hits like TLC's "No Scrubs" and Pink's "Can't Take Me Home," tweeted at the time, " I could never n a million years imagine this happening. please pray for AJ's children. that's who im the most concerned 4."
Joseph Cerniglia of ‘Kitchen Nightmares’
Joseph Cerniglia, a restaurateur who faced the withering criticism of Gordon Ramsay on Fox's Kitchen Nightmares in 2007, leaped to his death from the George Washington Bridge in New York in September 2010. "Nothing personal against Gordon Ramsay, but he is a poor inspiration for professional chefs in his shows," celebrity chef Eric Ripert wrote on his Twitter account after reading the news.
Julien Hug of ‘The Bachelorette’
Julien Hug, a restaurateur featured as a contestant on ABC's The Bachelorette, shot himself n Nov. 2010. Hug's body was discovered off a remote highway in the Southern California desert. "I'm sorry to have to do this to you. I love you both tremendously. You two are the best parents," Hug wrote in a suicide note read aloud at his funeral. "I've suffered from severe depression for years. I feel awful and don't know how to cope. If life's not enjoyable, why stick around?"
Gerald Babin of ‘Koh-Lanta’ aka ‘Survivor France’
In March 2013, shooting on Koh-Lanta, the Survivor of France, was cut short after contestant Gerald Babin, 25, died during the first day of filming. Cause of death was found to be cardiac arrest.
Mike DeStefano of ‘Last Comic Standing’
A stand-up comic who frequently addressed his own past as a heroin addict, which led to contracting HIV, Mike DeStefano was featured on season 7 of NBC's Last Comic Standing. He died in March 2011 from cardiac arrest, just hours after filming a video for funnyordie.com.
Mitchell Guist of ‘Swamp People’
A star of History's Swamp People along with his brother Glenn Guist, Mitchell Guist died on May 12, 2012, from natural causes, just four days short of his 48th birthday.
Najai Turpin of ‘The Contender’
Pro boxer Najai Turpin, a contestant on NBC's The Contender, killed himself in Feb. 2005 while sitting in a car with his girlfriend and 2-year-old daughter.
Nathan Clutter of ‘Paradise Hotel 2’
The star of Paradise Hotel 2, which aired on MyNetworkTV, Nathan Clutter leaped to his death from a cellular tower in Oct. 2007 at the age of 26.
Paula Goodspeed of ‘American Idol’
An obsessed fan of American Idol and star Paula Abdul, Paula Goodspeed had her first name legally changed to that of her hero. Goodspeed killed herself by overdosing on drugs in her car outside Abdul's Sherman Oaks home in Nov. 2008.
Rachel Brown of ‘Hell’s Kitchen’
Along with Joseph Cerniglia, 41-year-old Rachel Brown was a reality contestant who faced the tough criticism of Gordon Ramsay — Brown on Fox's Hell's Kitchen — before taking her life with a self-inflicted gunshot in 2007.
Discovery Helicopter Crash
A helicopter crash in February 2013 claimed the lives of three people involved the shooting of an "untitled military project" for Discovery Channel in Acton, Calif. The victims were helicopter pilot David Gibbs, 59, along with Darren Rydstrom, 45, crew of the show, and Michael Donatelli, 45, a cast member.
Rodney King, Jeff Conaway and Mike Starr of ‘Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew’
The substance-abuse-related deaths of police brutality victim Rodney King, Grease actor Jeff Conaway and Alice in Chains bassist Mike Starr shined a spotlight on Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew, a reality show which so far has had five fatalities among its troubled cast members, including Joey Kovar and Mindy McCready. "If somebody has a deadly disease that requires chronic treatment… [and] are not, everyday, involved in that treatment, their life is in danger today," Dr. Drew Pinsky told ET.
Ryan Dunn of ‘Jackass’
Jackass star Ryan Dunn and a production assistant on Jackass Number Two were killed when Dunn's Porsche 911 hit a tree in West Goshen Township, Penn. Dunn, who was 34 at the time of his death, was found to have a blood alcohol level of 0.196 percent — more than twice the legal limit — and was traveling between 132 and 140 miles per hour when the car crashed.
Steve Irwin of ‘The Crocodile Hunter’
Steve Irwin, the internationally beloved Australian wildlife expert and star of Animal Planet's The Crocodile Hunter, died in September 2006 near Port Douglas, Queensland, while snorkeling at Batt Reef, where he was shooting Ocean's Deadliest. He was doing some shallow water shots for his daughter Bindi's TV show, Bindi the Jungle Girl, when a stingray pierced his chest with its tail spine. He was pronounced dead at the scene. He was 44.
Ryan Jenkins of VH1’s ‘Megan Wants a Millionaire’
Ryan Jenkins had just completed filming on Megan Wants a Millionaire, a VH1 reality show starring former Rock of Love contestant Megan Hauserman, when he met Jasmine Fiore, a swimsuit model, at a Las Vegas casino in March 2009. They married at The Little White Wedding Chapel on the Las Vegas Strip. Five months later, Fiore's body was discovered, badly beaten, missing teeth and fingertips, and stuffed inside a suitcase left in a dumpster in an alley in Buena Park, Calif. She was identified by the serial numbers on her breast implants. A manhunt for Jenkins followed, and shortly after his body was found hanging by a belt in the Thunderbird Motel in Hope, British Columbia. He was 32.
Lex McAllister of ‘The Bachelor’
The Bachelor season 14 contestant Lex McAllister, pictured at the far right, died at the age of 31 on Feb. 16 of an apparent overdose on prescription pills. Friends and family of the reality star believed that she intended to end her life. McAllister was a contestant only through the second week of her season on the ABC show.
Angela ‘Big Ang’ Raiola of ‘Mob Wives’
The VH1 reality star died in the early morning of Feb. 18 after reports she was clinging to life on the night before. The Mob Wives star lost her battle to cancer at the age of 55 after being diagnosed last year with stage 4 brain cancer and undergoing several surgeries. Raiola had been a main character on the VH1 show since 2012.