--- description: Mychael Knight, a fashion designer and former contestant on the show Project Runway, has died. He was 39. title: 'Project Runway' Star Mychael Knight Has Died at 39 image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0a530d479bdba9f7/6988e26722fb856392e2350e/mychael-knight.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [U.S.](/section/us/) ## U.S. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [fashion](/tag/fashion/) ## fashion Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # _Project Runway_ Star Mychael Knight Has Died at 39  by [Billy Perrigo](/author/billy-perrigo/)  ## Billy Perrigo Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Correspondent Oct 18, 2017 12:35 PM CUT  Fashion designer Mychael Knight in Atlanta in December 2012 Fashion designer Mychael Knight in Atlanta in December 2012Moses Robinson—Getty Images  by [Billy Perrigo](/author/billy-perrigo/)  ## Billy Perrigo Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Correspondent Oct 18, 2017 12:35 PM CUT Mychael Knight, a fashion designer and former contestant on the show [_Project Runway_](http://content.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,1139622,00.html "undefined"), has died. He was 39, and his friend Jerris Madison confirmed to [NBC News](https://www.nbcnews.com/pop-culture/pop-culture-news/mychael-knight-project-runway-fashion-designer-dies-39-n811781 "undefined") that he died outside of Atlanta, Ga. Knight’s cause of death has not been disclosed, but he had written in the past that his struggles with irritable bowel syndrome were causing problems with his immune system, according to multiple reports. Knight had been a contestant in season 3 of _Project Runway_, in which he finished fourth but won the “Fan Favorite” award. He later returned for _Project Runway All-Stars_, finishing eighth. After his appearance on the show, Knight went on to launch his own clothing and lingerie lines. “We are still processing the untimely death of our son, brother, friend, and uncle,” his family said in a statement. “Mychael meant everything to us and we loved him dearly.” “Mychael Knight was my friend, my brother, and a voice of reason everyone wants in their corner in the entertainment industry,” [Madison said on his website](http://obviousmag.com/remembering-mychael-knight-1978-2017/ "undefined"). “He was passionate, outspoken, direct, kind, and unapologetic.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4987097/mychael-knight-project-runway-dead/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4987097/mychael-knight-project-runway-dead/"},"headline":"Project Runway Star Mychael Knight Has Died at 39","datePublished":"2017-10-18T12:35:26.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T17:54:24.425Z","description":"The cause of death was not immediately released","url":"https://time.com/4987097/mychael-knight-project-runway-dead/","keywords":["fashion","Television","celebrities","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0a530d479bdba9f7/6988e26722fb856392e2350e/mychael-knight.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Billy Perrigo","jobTitle":"Correspondent","url":"https://time.com/author/billy-perrigo/"}],"articleSection":"U.S.","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0a530d479bdba9f7/6988e26722fb856392e2350e/mychael-knight.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"CFDA (FASHION INCUBATOR) Cocktail Party At W Atlanta - Buckhead With Designers Daniel Vosovic, WHIT, Burkman Brothers And Emanuela Duca","caption":"CFDA (FASHION INCUBATOR) Cocktail Party At W Atlanta - Buckhead With Designers Daniel Vosovic, WHIT, Burkman Brothers And Emanuela Duca","creditText":"Moses Robinson—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/us/","name":"U.S."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/fashion/","name":"fashion"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4987097/mychael-knight-project-runway-dead/","name":"Project Runway Star Mychael Knight Has Died at 39"}}]}] ```