Daniel Mickelson, who had roles in 2019’s Mani, as well as The Killer Clown Meets The Candy Man, has died at the age of 23, his sister, Meredith Mickelson, confirmed on Instagram. Meredith posted a throwback photo of herself and Daniel, along with the sad news. “My heart is shattered and to write this feels so wrong and I don’t even know what to say,” she wrote. “Yesterday [July 4] I lost my brother, best friend and the other half of my heart.”
She added, “There wasn’t a person I loved more on this Earth. There’s no words that can do him justice that I could write. To know him was to love him. He was the happiest, brightest, smiley, most sunshine human to exist and I’m so happy God chose me to be his sister for his whole amazing life.” Daniel’s cause of death has not been confirmed at this time.
Shortly after Meredith made her devastating announcement, celebrities began paying tribute to the late star on Instagram. Kaia Gerber was friends with Daniel, and shared a screenshot of the two FaceTiming on her Instagram Story. “I remember that time we sat on the couch and spent the whole day coming up with our own secret language that we continued to speak every time we saw each other,” she recalled. “I wish we could go back there. I wish we were still talking in sentences that probably annoyed everyone else but made us crack up every time. I wish I was still sitting on my bathroom floor FaceTiming you, because that was the only place I had WiFi and I never wanted to miss a call from you. Thank you for being the reason for so much laughter and happiness in the world. It won’t be the same without you here.”
Many stars also took the comments section of Meredith’s Instagram post to share their condolences. “Praying for you,” Jordyn Woods wrote, with a red heart emoji, while Zedd said, “Soooooooo sooo sorry Meredith.” Chantel Jeffries wrote, “I am so sorry Meredith. Here for you angel,” and Delilah Hamlin added, “My heart is so broken. I’m so sorry Meredith. I love you Daniel. So much. Rest easy.” Delilah’s sister, Amelia Hamlin, commented, “My brother. The person who always put a smile on my face. I love you I love you I love you. I love you forever, Daniel,” and Patrick Schwarzenegger wrote, “Praying for you,” with various emojis. On Paris Hilton’s Instagram Story, she shared a photo of herself and Daniel and wrote, “You were such a light. So sad to hear this bro. RIP.”
Daniel’s girlfriend, Maddie Haley, also wrote a touching tribute. “I don’t want this to be real,” she said. “Words can’t even describe how I’m feeling right now. Last night I lost my best friend in the whole world. I feel like my heart’s been ripped out of my chest. Daniel you were the kindest person I have ever met. You lit up every room with your contagious smile and never failed to make anyone happy. There wasn’t one day that went by where you didn’t go out of your way to make me feel special and loved. I wish I could call you right now and hear you tell me everything is going to be okay. I wish my plans to spend the rest of my life with you weren’t stripped away from me like this. I wish I could tell you how much I love you and I wish I got the chance to say goodbye. I’m not sure how I’m going to get through this but I’m going to be strong for you because I know it ‘s what you would have wanted.”