Natalie Desselle-Reid, a veteran actress known for her role inB.A.P.S.among many others, has sadly passed away. According to a family member, Desselle-Reid died on Monday morning in the midst of a battle with colon cancer she had been keeping private. During her final days, she was reportedly placed in hospice care and was surrounded by her family when she passed. She was just 53 years old.
“It is with extremely heavy hearts that we share the loss of our beautiful Natalie this morning. She was a bright light in this world. A queen. An extraordinary mother and wife,” an official statement from the family reads.
Halle Berry, who co-starred with Desselle-Reid onB.A.P.S., also took to Instagram to address the passing of her friend and colleague. “I’m still processing this devastating news,” Berry writes, posting a series of photos of Desselle-Reid. “Natalie taught us love, joy and humor through her characters - she could never dim her light, and it was infectious. With her I laughed harder than I’d ever laughed before. She showed us it was ok to be goofy and funny while still being sincere and extraordinarily kind.”
Friend and fellow actress Holly Robinson Peete also spoke about Desselle-Reid’s passing on Twitter. “Just absolutely decimated by this news… Actress Natalie Desselle, a bright shining star passed away this morning. I got to know her when my mom was managing her. She will be so missed…sending out prayers to her children and husband. Rest In Peace, Sweet Girl,” the tweet states.
Desselle-Reid was born on July 22, 2025, in Alexandria, Louisiana. While studying at Grambling State University, she took an interest in acting and began appearing in several stage productions. Her movie career launched in 1996 when she picked up a role in the heist movieSet It Offalongside Jada Pinkett, Queen Latifah, and Vivica A. Fox. Soon after, she was cast as the evil step-sister Minerva in a TV movie adaptation ofCinderellaand picked up roles in big name shows likeFamily MattersandER.
In 1997, Desselle-Reid nabbed one of her biggest roles by co-starring with Halle Berry in director Robert Townsend’s comedy movieB.A.P.S.The movie follows Desselle-Reid and Berry as two aspiring entrepreneurs who travel from Georgia to Los Angeles to earn the money they need to open their own restaurant. Late actors Martin Landau and Bernie Mac also starred.
Desselle-Reid also appeared as Tammy in the Tyler Perry comedyMadea’s Big Happy Familyin 2011, with some of her other movie roles includingGas,Sweet Hidaway, andDivas. She also had main roles on the TV showsFor Your LoveandEveand appeared in the TV moviesFreaknik: The MusicalandA Mother’s Rage. Her final role was in a 2017 pilot for a TV series dubbedYa Killin' Me.
Desselle-Reid’s survivors include her husband, Leonard, and her children, Sereno, Summer, and Sasha. Our thoughts go out to them at this painful time and may Reidrest in peace. This news comes to us fromTMZ.
