‘Deadliest Catch’ Star Nick Mavar Dies at 59 — Fans React on Social Media

The Deadliest Catch family has lost another member. Nick Mavar, a deckhand from the Discoveryshow, died on Thursday, June 13, at age 59.

Mavar died after a medical emergency Thursday afternoon at a boatyard in Naknek, Alaska, Bristol Bay Police Chief Jeffrey Eldie informed Deadline. Paramedics took Mavar to a local hospital, where he was declared dead of natural causes, the police chief added.

Between 2005 and 2021, Mavar appeared in nearly 100 episodes of Deadliest Catch, serving as deckhand aboard Sig Hansen’s F/V Northwestern. He was also a cast member in the Deadliest Catch spinoffs After the Catch, Inside the Catch, Legends Born & Broken, Evolution of Danger, The Bait, and Siberian Winter.

Mavar left Deadliest Catch after a December 2020 medical scare, in which his appendix burst during filming. That crisis revealed a cancerous tumor, per Variety.

The deckhand later sued the F/V Northwestern’s owners, alleging there wasn’t a proper plan to get him medical help during the pandemic, and the owners then sued the production company over the same allegation, according to Deadline.

Mavar was the uncle of Deadliest Catch star Jake Anderson and helped Anderson recover from drug and alcohol addictions. “I love you, Uncle Nick Mavar,” Anderson wrote on Facebook in 2021. “You are the embodiment of [a] fisherman. Thank you for pulling me out of the mire so many years ago.”

Other Deadliest Catch cast members who have died include Phil Harris, Todd Kochutin, Nick McGlashan, Tony Lara, Blake Painter, and Justin Tennison.

On social media, Fans have been mourning Mara’s death. X user @MsAJF wrote, “Just heard about Nick Mavar. Absolutely stunned! I always liked him on @DeadliestCatch w/the Hansens because he seemed to be the voice of reason on a boat filled with chaos. I know he’s Jake’s uncle [and] recently remarried, so prayers to his family for peace [and] comfort.”

See other social media reactions below:

Sad news… 😢 Part of reality television revamp.
Nick Mavar died… #discoverychannel #deadliestcatch #fvnorthwesternhttps://t.co/AoGaTqIq3n

— Richard (@richard_k_nl) June 15, 2024

RIP #NickMavar. Sending love to the ⁦@fvnorthwestern⁩ crew and the entire fleet. #DeadliestCatch #BeringSea ⁦@DeadliestCatch⁩

‘Deadliest Catch’ Alum Nick Mavar Dies, Former Northwestern Deckhand Was 59 https://t.co/XHOTe0L7vr

— freelancejournalist (@freelancerjourn) June 15, 2024

Noooo Way??? RIP Nick Mavar. 😢😢https://t.co/uwh19Hd81i

— Trevor Rost (@TrevorRost6) June 14, 2024

@DeadliestCatch yoooo RIP Nick Mavar. One of my favs

— Dusty road (@DustyArkDream) June 14, 2024

Deadliest Catch, Tuesdays, 8/7c, Discovery