Gabrielle Union sheds light on husband Dwyane Wade's relationship with her father

Gabrielle Union recently appreciated her husband, Dwyane Wade, for his unwavering support as she grieves her father’s death, sharing how difficult it is to deal with the death of loved ones.

For those unaware, Gabrielle’s father, Sylvester “Cully” Union Jr., passed away at the age of 81 on April 3, 2026. Notably, the exact cause of Cully’s death is still unknown; however, he battled with dementia for years and had been in memory care since 2023.

On April 16, she showed up at the 2026 Tiffany & Co. Blue Book Gala, where she spoke to PEOPLE magazine about how her husband Dwyane, whom she married in 2014, helped her find strength during one of the hardest phases of her life.

The 53-year-old American actress and model said of Dwyane, "You know, my dad and my husband were very, very close, and I don't know, we just go through pictures and reminisce and he's just physically there when I'm crumbling.”

Notably, this confession comes after Gabrielle paid a heartfelt tribute to her late father on Instagram.

In her homage, she wrote, “No matter how much you think you know about dementia, nothing prepares you for the painfully slow disappearing of your loved one.”

“First it's repeating words or forgetting little things here or there, then BOOM, he can't swallow or walk. The them that you know gets smaller and smaller.”

“You hold out hope for sustained eye contact or a smile; even a hand squeeze can make you feel like they could come back to you 'normal' at any second. It's brutal and it's what he experienced, but it wasn't who he was,” the Bad Boys 2 star shared.

It is pertinent to mention that Gabrielle’s dad always “loved music, traveling the world, and spending time with extended family and friends.”