Heather Gray, executive producer of the CBS series The Talk and former supervising producer of the Tyra Banks Show, has died. She was 50 years old. No further details about Gray’s death are available at this time.
A letter sent by CBS to The Talk crew and the press confirmed the news. Although a cause of death was not disclosed, the network explained that Gray is “valiantly battling an unforgiving illness.”
The letter was written and distributed on behalf of CBS and was addressed by George Cheeks (President and CEO of CBS), David Stapf (President of CBS Studios), Kelly Kahl (President of CBS Network Entertainment), Thom Sherman (Senior EVP of Programming, CBS Network Entertainment), Amy Reisenbach (EVP, Current Programming, CBS Network Entertainment) and Laurie Seidman (SVP, Daytime Programming, CBS Network Entertainment).
“We would like to express our deepest condolences for the loss of our beloved Heather. She was an inspiration to all of us, alive and thriving while bravely battling an unforgiving illness. She showed us what true courage looks like,” the network wrote. “Her brilliance as an innovative producer was matched only by her big smile and infectious laugh. She was an admired, beloved mother bear to her family and a leader everyone looked up to.”
“Her contribution to the show’s success is immeasurable, but more importantly, she was a boss who proved that you can lead with kindness, caring and friendship. Heather was everyone’s friend, everyone’s champion, everyone’s favorite person on set. We will miss her terribly,” the letter continued.
Gray, the recipient of multiple Daytime Emmy Awards, joined The Talk in 2010 midway through its first season as Senior Supervising Producer. She was promoted to co-executive producer in August 2011 and was promoted again to executive producer in August 2019.
Gray received a Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Talk Show Entertainment in both 2016 and 2018 for “The Talk.” The acclaimed producer also received an NAACP image award for the show in 2016.
Before joining The Talk, Gray was a development producer at Endemol USA between 2010 and 2011. She was also the supervising producer on The Tyra Banks Show from 2006 to 2010. It was in this program that she earned her first two Daytime Emmy awards.