Vince McMahon Releases Statement on Brodie Lee’s Passing

WWE Chairman Vince McMahon released a statement on Sunday regarding the passing of Jon Huber, formerly known as Luke Harper in WWE and Brodie Lee in All Elite Wrestling. McMahon tweeted, “The entire WWE family is deeply saddened by the passing of Jon Huber, known to the WWE Universe as Luke Harper. Our thoughts are with Jon’s family, friends, and fans.” The former Intercontinental and Tag Team Champion first joined WWE in 2012, first as a member of The Wyatt Family and later as one-half of The Bludgeon Brothers.

He departed from WWE in late 2019, then arrived in AEW as Mr. Brodie Lee in mid-March while revealing he was “The Exalted One” of The Dark Order. His last match took place in October, losing the TNT Championship back to Cody Rhodes in a Dog Collar Match.

AEW released a statement on Lee’s death on Saturday evening.

“The All Elite Wrestling family is heartbroken. In an industry filled with good people, Jon Huber was exceptionally respected and beloved in every way — a fierce and captivating talent, a thoughtful mentor and simply a very kind soul that starkly contradicted his persona as Mr. Brodie Lee,” the statement read. “Jon’s love for his wife Amanda, and children Brodie and Nolan, was evident to all of us who were fortunate to spend time with him, and we send our love and support to his beautiful family, today and always. Jon’s popularity among his peers and influence on the wrestling world was worldwide and transcended AEW, so this loss will be felt by many for a long time.

“We were privileged at AEW to call Jon Huber a brother, a friend and one of our own,” it concluded.

Lee’s wife confirmed on Instagram his death was due to a lung issue.

“My best friend died today,” she wrote. “I never wanted to write out those words. My heart is broken. The world saw him as the amazing @brodielee (fka Luke Harper) but he was my best friend, my husband, and the greatest father you would ever meet. No words can express the love I feel or how broken I am right now. He passed surrounded by love ones after a hard fought battle with a non Covid related lung issue. The @mayoclinic is literally the best team of doctors and nurses in the world who surrounded me with constant love. On top of that, I can’t express my love and admiration for the way @allelitewrestling has treated not only my husband but myself and my kids. @margaret.stalvey @meghalegalgirl10 @americannightmarecody @thebrandirhodes @nickjacksonyb @mattjackson13 @kennyomegamanx @tonyrkhan and the rest of the team at AEW have helped keep me standing and pick up all the broken pieces.”