In an interview with Robin Roberts for Good Morning America, Regina King opened up about losing her son Ian Alexander Jr. to suicide in 2022.
King is making her acting comeback after taking a two-year break with the Shirley Chisholm biopic Shirley, which she has dedicated to her son, whom she shared with ex-husband Ian Alexander Sr. "I'm a different person now than I was January 19th, I am... Grief is a journey," she said when asked how she coped the last two years. "I understand that grief is love that has no place to go. I know that it's important to me to honor Ian in the totality of who he is, speak about him in the present because he is always with me. The joy and happiness that he gave all of us."
She said she's since had "time to just sit with Ian's choice," but it didn't come easy. "I respect and understand that he didn't want to be here anymore. And that's a hard thing for other people to receive, because they did not live our experience, did not live Ian's journey," she shared. "I was so angry with God. Why would that weight be given to Ian?"
King sought help for Ian through therapists and psychiatrists, but she recalled that he said he was "tired" of talking about his struggles. "My favorite thing about myself is being Ian's Mom, and I can't say that with a smile, with tears, with all of the emotion that comes with that. I can't do that if I did not respect the journey." She added that his absence can be "loud" at times, but other times she smiles when she thinks about him.
"Sometimes a lot of guilt comes over me," she continued. "When a parent loses a child, you still wonder, 'What could I have done so that wouldn't have happened?' I know that I share this grief with everyone, but no one else is Ian's Mom. ... The sadness will never go away and it will always be with me." Despite that, she said that sadness is a reminder of how much he means to her.
Ian Alexander Jr. died shortly after his 26th birthday in January 2022. He was a disc jockey and was scheduled to perform in Los Angeles that same month.
"Our family is devastated at the deepest level by the loss of Ian," King said in a statement in 2022. "He is such a bright light who cared so deeply about the happiness of others. Our family asks for respectful consideration during this private time. Thank you."
King took time off from acting after his death. Before Shirley, her last project was The Harder They Fall in 2021.
If you or someone you know needs help, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255.
