Daniel Mickelson, a rising actor who appeared in the indie horror film The Killer Clown Meets the Candy Man, has died at the age of 23.
The actor's younger sister, model Meredith Mickelson, revealed that he passed away on Sunday, as she shared a touching Instagram tribute on Monday. A cause of death has yet to be publicly revealed.
Sharing a snap of herself and her brother smiling on the beach together as children, Meredith Mickelson wrote: "My heart is shattered & to write this feels so wrong and i don't even know what to say. Yesterday i lost my brother, best friend & the other half of my heart.
"There wasn't a person i loved more on this earth. theres 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."
Model Kaia Gerber, daughter of Cindy Crawford, took to her Instagram stories to share her own tribute to Mickelson, writing: "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.
"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. I love you Daniel."
A host of stars—including Paris Hilton, Patrick Schwarzenegger, Jordyn Woods, Lottie Moss, and Madison Beer—expressed their condolences on Meredith's post.
Amelia Gray Hamlin, daughter of actors Lisa Rinna and Harry Hamlin, said she would love Daniel "forever," before adding in a further post: "my brother. the person who always put a smile on my face. i love you i love you i love you."
Hamlin's older sister, Delilah Belle Hamlin, wrote on Instagram: "My heart is so broken. I'm so sorry Meredith❤️ I love you Daniel. So much. Rest easy ❤️."
Meanwhile, Daniel Mickelson's girlfriend, Maddie Haley, took to Instagram to share a series of images and videos of herself with the actor.
"I don't want this to be real," she wrote in an accompanying caption. "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 hearts 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.
"Everything I do now is for you. Now I have a guardian angel by my side for the rest of my life. I am going to make you so proud. I love you forever babe."
