Fans Are Reacting To Regina King And Jimmy Kimmel's Emotional Moment On His Late Night Show
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Warning: Discussion of suicide.
Regina King and Jimmy Kimmel shared an emotional moment on Jimmy Kimmel Live! Thursday.
Aliah Anderson / WireImage, Frank Micelotta / DISNEY via Getty Images
Regina, 53, is a legendary Academy-Award-winning actor with a career that spans nearly four decades across television and film, from the '80s TV sitcom 227 to critically acclaimed films Ray and If Beale Street Could Talk, the latter of which earned her the Oscar.
Regina joined the late-night show to promote her new Netflix biopic Shirley, which is about the first Black congresswoman, Shirley Chisholm, in one of her first interviews since the death of her son Ian Alexander Jr.
Regina's son and only child, Ian, died by suicide in 2022 at the age of 26. Regina had remained out of the spotlight after his death until she recently sat down with Robin Roberts on Good Morning America.
“I understand that grief is love that has no place to go. I know that it's important to me to honor Ian and the totality of who he is.”@ReginaKing speaks out to @robinroberts for the first time about her son’s death over two years ago. https://t.co/yIiTGItzCY pic.twitter.com/D2fXGdcauc
— Good Morning America (@GMA) March 14, 2024
ABC/Twitter: @GMA
"Grief is a journey, you know?" Regina said to Robin. "I understand that grief is love that has no place to go."
"When it comes to depression, people expect it to look a certain way, and they expect it to look heavy," she added.
Through tears, Regina explained how it felt to witness Ian's struggles and live with his decision and how it's hard for people to relate to because they did not live her or her son's experience. "I was so angry with God. You know, why would that weight be given to Ian?" she said. "With all of the things that we had gone through with the therapy, with psychiatrists, and programs, and Ian was like, 'I'm tired of talking, Mom.'"
"I know that I share this grief with everyone," Regina continued. "But no one else is Ian's mom, you know? Only me. And so it's mine. And the sadness will never go away. It'll always be with me. And I think I saw somewhere, the sadness is a reminder of how much he means to me, you know?"
The four-time Emmy winner's next stop was Jimmy Kimmel Live! — the brief but tender moment shared between the late-night host and Regina, who've shared many interviews over the years, gained a lot of attention from fans.
"It's very good to see you," Jimmy said. "How are you doing right now?"
"Right now, I'm good," Regina said, smiling.
"Good, I'm glad to hear that," Jimmy responded, getting choked up. "I know you've been through a lot the last year."
Regina leaned over to Jimmy, grabbed his hand firmly, and said, "It's good to see you, Jimmy."
This emotional moment truly resonated with audiences and fans of Regina and Jimmy. Here's what they're saying:
This moment was so heartwarming and sad at the same time. The empathy Jimmy felt for Regina as he held back tears looking at her, while she remained strong and comforted him 😮💨😪 We love you Regina! pic.twitter.com/a1qrvUoMgr
— CHRIS RULES (@ChrisRules_) March 22, 2024
the way his voice cracked and how she grabbed his hand broke me 💔
— ً (@tylerduran21) March 23, 2024
No, it's cool, I can re-do my mascara. Thanks.
— Charlotte Clymer 🇺🇦 (@cmclymer) March 23, 2024
Love you, Regina. And @JimmyKimmelLive for your empathy.💕💕💕💕💕💕💕
— Dana Dean (@DanaDean369) March 23, 2024
Thank you for sharing this beautiful moment. I don’t know where Moms find the strength, but they keep showing up over and over no matter how hurt they are
— Melissa (@Tardy4daparty) March 23, 2024
Hearing his voice break and seeing Regina reach for his hand really got me.She’s such an amazing person, and so sorry for the tragic loss of her son.
— Dogs Dogs More Dogs (@DogsDogsMoreDog) March 23, 2024
And good on him for asking "are you doing right NOW?" A subtle way to let your guest know you are aware of their situation, gives them the space to address it (or not)
— Jakey Emmert (@Jakeyin612) March 22, 2024
Watch Regina's interview on Jimmy Kimmel Live! here:
You can watch Regina as Shirley on Netflix now.
The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is 1-800-273-8255. Other international suicide helplines can be found at befrienders.org. The Trevor Project, which provides help and suicide-prevention resources for LGBTQ youth, is 1-866-488-7386.
