René Nezhoda has spoken out following the death of his former co-star Darrell Sheets, sharing a tribute while also pointing to a concerning issue he says Sheets was dealing with in the weeks before he died.
Sheets, 67, was found dead at his home on Wednesday April 22, with reports stating he appeared to have suffered a single self inflicted gunshot wound to the head.
Not long after the news emerged, Nezhoda uploaded an Instagram video in which he mourned Sheets and addressed the competitive dynamic viewers saw between them.
“This was not an easy video to shoot. Unfortunately, Darrell Sheets took his own life. So he passed away,” Nezhoda began. “I know a lot of you guys think we hated each other because we competed a lot on the show. And you know, we had our moments. We had our run-ins because we were both competitors, right? We were both competitors with the biggest threat out there.”
Nezhoda then emphasized that, despite their on-camera clashes, their relationship away from filming was very different, and he described the impact the loss is having on those close to Sheets.
“So deep down me and Darrell were friends, we talked every now and then,” he explained. “He was a very hard worker that cared more than anyone I’ve ever met about their family, about his son, about Zoie [his granddaughter], pretty much [all the] people in his life.”
In the same message, Nezhoda also claimed Sheets had recently been targeted online, and he used the moment to call for greater responsibility around how people treat others on social media.
“Rest in peace Darrell Sheets. Also I know Darrell would want something positive out of this, so he had a guy that [was] really really tormenting him lately. Cyberbullying,” he said.
“Guys, just because you watch us on television, doesn’t mean you know us,” Nezhoda continued. “It doesn’t mean you know what we’re about. Also, it doesn’t entitle you to bully somebody. That’s not [just] us, that’s anybody. That’s any athlete. You shouldn’t cyberbully at all.”
“As a matter of fact, if you have somebody in your life that thinks it’s funny to cyberbully other people, may that be a celebrity, athlete or little girl at school… slap ’em in the back of the head. Make them become a better human being.”
Closing out his post, Nezhoda reflected on how personal battles can remain unseen from the outside, while saying he hoped the situation would be properly examined.
“You never know what demons somebody faces and what they go through and what you might push them through,” he concluded. “Darrell has been posting a lot about the guy that has been cyberbullying and torturing him and I really hope they look into that guy and that’s just not a pass. It’s just not right guys. Be better.”