ANOTHER TRAGIC LOSS

Caitlyn Jenner’s Friend Found Dead in Canyon

This is the second tragic death in less than a year of someone in Jenner’s close circle.

Writer William Hasley, a friend of Caitlyn Jenner, was found dead at age 78 near Runyon Canyon in Los Angeles on Saturday evening. The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office has not yet revealed a cause of death. “LAFD Air Operations lowered rescuers to the patient, and medical treatment was administered,” an LAFD spokesperson said about the rescue mission, adding that Hasley was pronounced dead at the scene. Hasley was commissioned to write Jenner’s 1996 self-help book, Finding the Champion Within, after they became friends during an earlier project. The prolific writer penned episodes for shows such as Swift Justice, Ghost Stories, Murder, She Wrote, Kung Fu, The Young Riders, and Highway to Heaven, as well as screenplays for production companies like Universal Pictures, Warner Brothers, and 20th Century Fox. Prior to his death, Hasley was working as a screenwriting instructor at UCLA. He is survived by his ex-wife, actress Robin Riker. This is the second death to occur in less than a year within Jenner’s close circle, after her longtime manager, 29-year-old Sophia Hutchins, died in an ATV accident on Decker Canyon on July 2, 2025.