A BELOVED influencer, actor and Broadway star has died after a lengthy battle with a rare form of cancer.
Bret Hanna-Shuford, 46, passed away just days after posting a heartbreaking photo from his hospital bed of him smiling alongside his husband.
Dad-of-one Bret shared a positive Christmas Day picture where he tragically looked ahead to 2026 and said “hope to see you all soon”.
On Saturday, his partner Stephen Hanna confirmed the sad news that Bret had peacefully passed away.
Stephen said: “It is with a heavy heart that we share the news that early this morning we said goodbye to the most amazing man, husband and Papa in the universe.
“Bret Hanna-Shuford left this world peacefully with love surrounded by his family.
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“Our hearts are broken but we will continue to make him proud of us.”
He leaves behind his young three-year-old son, Maverick.
The actor, who had roles in the Wolf of Wall Street, Little Mermaid and Wicked, was diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer over the summer.
Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) and T-Cell Lymphoma – both rare disorders – left Bret in and out of hospital in his final months.
Both cancers attack the body’s immune system with T-Cell Lymphoma being among the deadliest forms of the disease.
Bret and Stephen were best known for their ever-growing social media page which detailed their family life.
Broadway Husbands managed to amass over 255,000 followers at the time of Bret’s death.
The account would go on to update followers on Bret’s health in recent months.
In October, he revealed he spent three days unconscious in the ICU due to the disease attacking his immune system.
His illness also forced Bret to step away from his graduate studies at the University of Central Florida.
The couple had only just moved into their new home in Orlando at the time.
A GoFundMe was launched for the Broadway star in August.
As of Saturday evening, the page has raised over $315,000 of its $350,000 fundraising goal.
One of the final posts on the fundraiser from December 12, stated how Bret had been in hospital since Thanksgiving.
A post from a friend read: “As many of you may have noticed, posts have been rather radio silent from both Bret and Stephen.
“These past few weeks have been some of the toughest that they have faced in this cancer journey. Bret has been in the hospital since just before Thanksgiving.”
But Bret was believed to have been improving health wise.
“As of today, Bret is looking and feeling better. His liver enzymes have plateaued, which is good, and he is back in the right direction with his oxygen,” the post continued.
Bret had many small-screen film and TV credits, including a 2018 episode of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and a 2023 appearance on the cop drama series FBI: Most Wanted.
He also directed an episode of the Emmy Award-winning Hulu series Only Murders in the Building in 2023, according to his IMDb page.
Bret is also known for his acting and producing work on Disney Royals, Disney Animazent Trio IRL, and In Rehearsal with… Stranger Things the Musical.
He and Stephen, who works at Walt Disney World, tied the knot in April 2011.