Breaking news:Ariana DeBose’s Mom Gina Dies at 57 from Ovarian Cancer: ‘She Was My Favorite Person’

Ariana DeBose’s Mom Gina Dies at 57 from Ovarian Cancer: ‘She Was My Favorite Person’
People
Jack Smart
August 19, 2025 at 8:26 PM
Ariana DeBose/Instagram Ariana DeBose and mom Gina DeBose
Ariana DeBose/Instagram

Ariana DeBose and mom Gina DeBose
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Ariana DeBose’s mother Gina died on Aug. 17 from “complications with stage 3 ovarian cancer,” the actress announced on Aug. 19

A middle school teacher, Gina raised her daughter in North Carolina

In a heartfelt Instagram post full of photos of her mother, DeBose paid tribute to her “favorite person”

Ariana DeBose is mourning the loss of her mother Gina, who died at age 57.

“At 10:28 am on August 17th my gorgeous, hilarious, outspoken, warrior queen Mother – Gina Michelle DeBose – passed away due to complications with stage 3 ovarian cancer,” the Oscar winner revealed in a post on Instagram Tuesday, Aug. 19.

“I couldn’t be more proud of her and how she fought this insidious disease over the past 3 years. She was 57 years young,” added DeBose, 34.

Calling Gina “my favorite person, my biggest fan and toughest critic,” the Hamilton alum continued: “She was my date to every important moment in my professional and personal life – and I wouldn’t have it any other way. It had always been the two of us for as long as I can remember. Through lean times, and there were many of those & green times.”

Gina was a public school teacher who raised her daughter in North Carolina. DeBose affectionately referred to her mother as “Miss Gina” in a 2022 conversation with PEOPLE about her first of three Tony Awards hosting gigs, which she celebrated alongside her partner, costume designer Sue Makkoo, and Gina.

The Summer: The Donna Summer Musical Tony nominee brought Gina as her date to the 2018 ceremony when she was nominated.

“She fought like hell to give me a good life, a good education and every opportunity in the world. I wouldn’t be where I am without her,” continued DeBose’s Instagram tribute, which included a slide of organizations to donate to, including The National Ovarian Cancer Society and Teal Diva.

Referring to her Academy Award win for 2021’s West Side Story remake, DeBose said, “I meant it when I said my Oscar ‘is just as much hers as it is mine.’ ”

Gina was “beloved and incredibly respected by her colleagues and students alike” as well as “many people in her community,” the Love Hurts star continued. “For the record: my greatest and most proud achievement will always be to have made her proud.”

She concluded with, “I love you mommy. Now travel amongst the seas, the winds and the angels as I know you always loved to do.”

After appearing at the 2025 Tony Awards, including in a 10th anniversary tribute to Hamilton, DeBose recently booked a return to the stage in the lead role in a new Classic Stage Company production of Joseph Stein and Stephen Schwartz’s 1976 musical The Baker’s Wife.

Among her upcoming screen projects are the Shakespeare-inspired Lear Rex and the page-to-screen adaptation of Scarpetta costarring Nicole Kidman and Jamie Lee Curtis.