Reality stars gone too soon

Wonderwall.com is taking a look back at the reality TV stars we lost way too soon. First is Diem Brown, a beloved MTV personality who first competed on "Real World/Road Rules Challenge: Fresh Meat" back in 2006 and appeared on seven additional editions of the popular franchise after that. She was just 34 when she succumbed to ovarian cancer. She'd been open about her battle with the disease throughout her time on the channel and had competed most recently on "The Challenge, Battle of the Exes II" in 2015. Keep reading to see other reality stars who tragically passed away far too young…

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"The Voice" contestant Christina Grimmie was 22 when she was tragically murdered in 2016 at a concert venue in Orlando, Florida, while she was signing autographs for fans following a performance. She was taken to the hospital in critical condition after being shot — her brother tackled the shooter, who got free and turned the gun on himself — and pronounced dead shortly after. She had competed on Season 6 of the show and finished in third place, sparking a successful music career.

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In 2015, another former contestant on "The Voice," Anthony Riley, passed away at 28 after committing suicide. He'd competed on Season 8, landing a spot on Pharrell Williams' team, but abruptly left the show to deal with personal issues, which were later revealed to involve his struggle with addiction.

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Steve Irwin gained worldwide fame as the star of "The Crocodile Hunter," a wildlife documentary series that he hosted with wife Terri Irwin. His life was cut short in 2006 while he was doing what he loved — working with wildlife. He was pierced in the heart by a stingray barb and killed at just 44. He'd been shooting an underwater documentary film called "Ocean's Deadliest" at the time.

"The Bachelor" fan favorite Gia Allemand had been arguing with her NBA player boyfriend, Ryan Anderson, just a few hours before she attempted suicide in August 2013. After their fight, Gia's mother contacted Ryan to ask him to check on her, and he discovered she had tried to hang herself. She was taken to a hospital and put on life support and died two days later at 29. The reality star first appeared on Season 14 of "The Bachelor" with Jake Pavelka. She was the second to last contestant eliminated that season. She also appeared on the spinoff "Bachelor Pad."

Lex McAllister, who also appeared on Jake Pavelka's season of "The Bachelor," passed away in 2016 from a drug overdose at 29. Her death was later ruled a suicide.

Bravo personality Annabelle Neilson passed away in July 2018. The "Ladies of London" star's family revealed the sad news that she'd suffered a heart attack at age 49.

"The Voice" contestant Janice Freeman passed away unexpectedly in March 2019. The singer, who competed on the show during 2017's Season 13, died from "an extreme case of pneumonia and a blood clot that traveled to her heart," according to her team. She was just 33 years old.

Fatima Ali, who competed on Season 15 of "Top Chef," died in January 2019 following a battle with a Ewing's Sarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer.

Mike Thalassitis, who rose to fame on the popular British reality show "Love Island," committed suicide in London in March 2019. He was 26.

Rickey Smith was hit head-on by a drunk driver going the wrong way on a highway in 2016. He was just 36. He'd competed on Season 2 of "American Idol," coming in eighth place (Ruben Studdard won that year).

"The Real World: New Orleans" star Ryan Knight passed away in 2014, just weeks after fellow MTV star Diem Brown's death. He was 29. Aside from appearing on one of the original reality TV shows, "The Real World," Ryan had also competed on MTV's successful series "The Challenge." Methadone, Tramadol, cocaine and Xanax were found in his system and his death was ruled an accidental overdose.

Mirjana Puhar was a contestant on Cycle 21 of "America's Next Top Model" in 2014. Less than a year later, she was murdered at just 19. The aspiring model was shot in her boyfriend's apartment in North Carolina. He was murdered as well.

"The Bachelorette" contestant Julien Hug was found dead in 2010. He'd been suffering from depression and committed suicide at 35. He was featured on Season 5 of the series, on which Jillian Harris starred, a year prior.

Lyric McHenry was featured on the E! reality series "EJNYC," which chronicled the life of her longtime friend EJ Johnson. She tragically passed away after celebrating her 26th birthday in 2018. An autopsy later revealed she'd died of an overdose of cocaine, alcohol and heroin. She was pregnant at the time.

Joshua Marks committed suicide in 2013 at 26, just months after his season of "MasterChef" aired. He'd come in second place when he competed on the cooking show's third season.

Anna Nicole Smith was a pioneer of reality television, starring on E!'s "The Anna Nicole Show" in 2002. The popular series ran for three seasons before the model died in her room at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Florida, in 2007. She was 39. It was later determined that she died from combined drug intoxication, mainly due to a sleeping medication called chloral hydrate. None of the 11 drugs found in her system were illegal, and her death was ultimately ruled an accidental overdose.

Michael Johns competed on Season 7 of "American Idol" and came in eighth place in 2008. The singer died in 2014 at 35 from an enlarged heart and fatty liver.

Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown's daughter, Bobbi Kristina Brown, passed away at just 22 in 2015. She'd appeared on 2005's "Being Bobby Brown" with her parents and 2012's "The Houstons: On Our Own," a reality show chronicling the life of Whitney's family following the diva's tragic death earlier that same year. Sadly, like her mother, Bobbi Kristina was also found facedown in a bathtub of water with drugs in her system. But while Whitney died immediately, Bobbi Kristina, who was in her Georgia apartment at the time, was pulled out and put into a medically induced coma in January 2015. She received neurological care for months but later was withdrawn from life support and moved to hospice that June. She died a month later.

"Survivor: Palau" contestant Jennifer Lyon passed away at age 37 in 2010. The reality star was battling stage 3 breast cancer at the time. She'd placed fourth on her season of the reality competition series.

Ahead of his season's premiere, "The Bachelorette" contestant Eric Hill died at 31 after suffering serious injuries in a paragliding accident in 2014. He'd competed for Andi Dorfman's heart on Season 10 of the ABC show but was eliminated early on, and his death occurred while the show was still filming. The moment Andi and the other contestants heard the news was caught on film; Andi broke down in tears and revealed she'd regretted their final moments together since he'd left after they'd had a disagreement.

"The X Factor" finalist Simone Battle passed away in 2014 at age 25. She committed suicide by hanging and had battled depression. The singer had been a member of the Pussycat Dolls spinoff group G.R.L.

"Deadliest Catch" star Phil Harris suffered a stroke and died during the popular Discovery Channel show's sixth season in 2010. Phil had been a fixture on the series since 2010 as it followed his ship, the Cornelia Marie. He was 53.

Michael Nance, who competed for Emily Maynard's heart on Season 8 of "The Bachelorette" back in 2012, passed away in 2017. He was found unresponsive in Austin, Texas, and was rushed to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead at age 31. The medical examiner found he'd ingested cocaine, heroin, Clonazepam and Gabapentin before his death.

Beverly McClellan, who rose to fame on the first season of "The Voice," passed away in October 2018. The 49 year old had been battling cancer.

"Hell's Kitchen" contestant Jessica Vogel passed away in July 2018. Her fiancé, John Michael Keyser, told NorthJersey.com that "her heart gave out" while she was being treated at a local hospital for colitis, a disease that causes inflammation in the digestive tract. The 34 year old had competed on Season 12 of the popular FOX reality show.

"American Idol" contestant Joanne Borgella tragically passed away in 2014 after a rare form of endometrial cancer spread to her brain. She was just 32. She'd competed on Season 7 of the show in 2008. She'd also appeared on a variety of other reality TV shows including MTV's "Made" in 2011 and NUVOtv's "Curvy Girls" in 2013. Prior to that, she'd also competed on the first season of "Mo'Nique's Fat Chance" in 2005.

Railway worker Caleb Bankston competed on "Survivor: Blood vs. Water" alongside his fiancé, "Survivor: One World" contestant Colton Cumbie, on Season 27 of the show in 2013. He died the following year when the coal train he was on derailed. He was just 26.

Kandi Burruss's former fiancé Ashley "A.J." Jewell, 34 — who often made appearances on her show, "The Real Housewives of Atlanta" — died in 2009 from injuries he sustained in a brawl outside a club in his native Atlanta.

"Love Island" star Sophie Gradon committed suicide by hanging in June 2018. The British reality TV star was just 32 years old. An inquest revealed she had cocaine and an excess of alcohol in her system when she died.

Jael Strauss passed away in December 2018 after battling breast cancer. She'd competed on Cycle 8 of "America's Next Top Model" and quickly become a fan favorite back in 2007. She was just 34.

Shain Gandee, star of MTV's "Buckwild," died in 2013. He was just 21 when he was found dead from carbon monoxide poisoning caused when his vehicle became submerged in deep mud with the exhaust pipe covered. He was found with his uncle and another friend.

Damien Gurganious, who first competed on Season 7 of "The Biggest Loser," died in 2014. The 38 year old suffered a sudden onset of a rare autoimmune disorder, idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura, which led to bleeding in his brain. He'd also competed alongside his fiancé-turned-wife, Nicole Brewer, on "The Bigger Loser: Couples" in 2009.

"The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" star Taylor Armstrong's husband, Russell Armstrong, committed suicide in 2011. The venture capital executive had been featured on the hit Bravo series, which chronicled his and Taylor's marital problems. They'd split before he hung himself at 47; it was also later revealed that he was in deep debt at the time of his death.

"Jackass" star Ryan Dunn was 34 when he died in a 2011 car crash in Pennsylvania that also took the life of his passenger. The reality TV star, who'd been featured on the MTV show and in three related films, had a blood alcohol concentration of .196 when his Porsche, which was traveling at more than 130 mph, jumped a guard rail and caught fire in a wooded area.

Erin Storm, a former contestant on "The Bachelor" during Matt Grant's season in 2008, died in a plane crash in 2016. She'd been working as a pilot at the time of her death, which happened in a small, single-seat aircraft in Hawthorn, California.

Michael Fortunato, who'd appeared on MTV's "Catfish," died in 2013 from a pulmonary embolism. He was 26 and had recently appeared on the Season 2 episode "Ashley and Mike," which chronicled his seven-year online relationship with Ashley Sawyer. Tragically, Ashley's death followed soon after…

Ashley Sawyer — the other person featured on the Season 2 "Catfish" episode "Ashley and Mike" — passed away a few years later in 2016. Her death was investigated as a drug overdose. She was 26.

Bravo star Daisy Lewellyn died at 36 in 2016. The "Blood, Sweat and Heels" star had suffered from cancer of the bile ducts.

"The Real World: San Diego" cast member Frankie Abernathy died at 25 in 2007 after a long battle with cystic fibrosis that began when she was a toddler.

MTV's "Rob & Big" star Christopher "Big Black" Boykin passed away suddenly from a heart attack in 2017 at age 45. He served as skateboarder Rob Dyrdek's bodyguard on the reality show, which was so popular that it launched two spinoff series.

Valerie Fairman, who appeared on "16 and Pregnant," died of a drug overdose in 2016 at 23. She welcomed daughter Nevaeh Lynn on the MTV reality show in 2010.

"Wicked Tuna" star William Joseph "Willbilly" Hathaway died in a car accident in December 2018. He was 36.

Another "Wicked Tuna" star, fisherman Nicholas "Duffy" Fudge, died unexpectedly in July 2018. Though no cause of death was released at the time, fellow fisherman speculated that he could have had decompression sickness, otherwise known as "the bends." The 28 year old also appeared on "Wicked Tuna: Outer Banks."

"Storm Chasers" star and meteorologist Joel Taylor was found dead on a cruise ship in January 2018. Toxicology reports later revealed he had a fatal mix of drugs in his system including ecstasy, an anesthetic, Ambien and amphetamines. He was 38.

TLC's "My 600 Lb. Life" star James "L.B." Bonner died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound in August 2018. He was just 30 years old when he committed suicide.