Dave Hollis, former Disney exec, author and ex to Rachel Hollis, dies at 47

Dave Hollis, who was top brass at Disney before joining heads to help with his ex-wife's media empire, has died. He was 47.

Author Rachel Hollis, with whom he shares four children, wrote that the family is "devastated" by his death on Instagram Tuesday. 

"I have no words and my heart is too broken to find them," the "Girl, Wash your Face" author wrote. "Please wrap the kids up in prayer as we try and navigate through the unthinkable."

Hollis had been hospitalized recently for heart problems according to reports from Variety and The Los Angeles Times. 

He was pronounced dead Sunday afternoon at his home in Dripping Springs, a city on the outskirts of Austin, according to Hays County Justice of the Peace Andrew Cable. An autopsy will be performed to determine the cause of death since Hollis, who was last seen the evening before, was “youthful and didn't have a long medical history," Cable said.

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Hollis was the former president of Disney's worldwide distribution for nearly seven years before stepping away to help with his ex's media empire after he recognized he was in a corporate rut. Though he was skeptical about entering the self-help space.

"I finally one day said, ‘Fine, I don’t trust it. I think that there’s some snake oil in this personal development space but it’s worked for you. I have to at least see what it’s about,’” he told The Associated Press in 2018. 

The couple and their children moved from Los Angeles to the Austin area, collaborated on livestreams, podcasts and organized life-affirming conferences. In their podcast, “Rise Together,” they focused on marriage.

Hollis wrote his debut book "Get Out of Your Own Way" months before he and Rachel announced they'd be splitting ways in June 2020.

When Rachel Hollis announced on Instagram that they were getting divorced, she said they had worked “endlessly” over the prior three years to make their marriage work but came to the conclusion that “it is healthier and more respectful for us to choose this as the end of our journey as a married couple.”

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Hollis went on to write two more books, 2021's "Built with Courage" and a children's book in 2020, "Here's to Your Dreams."

During his tenure at Disney, Hollis oversaw the release of blockbusters including “Black Panther" and films in the the “Star Wars" franchise.

Lawyer and media personality Mel Robbins mourned the loss of her close friend whom she considered a brother on Instagram.

"You made me laugh harder than anyone I’ve ever met. We could talk about anything, and to anyone, for hours and hours. And we did. Everywhere we went there was laughter," she wrote Tuesday. "We always joked that we must have been siblings in another lifetime because it felt like we had known you forever."

Hollis' girlfriend Heidi Powell also grieved the loss on social media.

"I’m heartbroken and totally devastated," she wrote alongside pictures of the two. "I’m not sure how forward looks without a piece of your love. The best love I’ve ever been given. Other-worldly kind of love. I cannot believe this is real."

Contributing: The Associated Press

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Dave Hollis death: Ex-husband of author Rachel Hollis was 47