Heavy Gravestones with Christmas wreaths
Actress Sherri Saum’s husband, actor Kamar de los Reyes, died at age 56 on Christmas Eve. Saum, who starred in Hallmark‘s 2022 rom-com “Perfect Harmony,” announced his death via a family spokesperson on December 25, 2023, according to The Hollywood Reporter (THR).
Here’s what you need to know:
Sherri Saum & Kamar de los Reyes Met on the Set of ‘One Life to Live’
GettyKamar de los Reyes and Sherri Saum attend the “Bridgerton” Season 2 & The Queen’s Ball preview in March 2022
De los Reyes died in Los Angeles after a brief battle with cancer, THR reported. The Puerto Rico native was best known for his recurring role as troubled police officer Antonio Vega on “One Life to Live,” which he left in 1998. He returned to the soap opera in 2000 and remained part of the cast until the series ended in 2013.
According to IMDb, other prominent roles have included playing Jobe in Fox’s 2017 series “Sleepy Hollow.” In 2022, de los Reyes joined the CW series “All American” as Coach Montes and, according to THR, he was still working on the show at the time of his death. He had also recently filmed a role in Hulu’s not-yet-released “Washington Black,” starring Sterling K. Brown, and has a significant role in Marvel’s upcoming “Daredevil” series.
Saum and de los Reyes met on the set of “One Life to Live,” on which their characters were romantically involved. They married in 2007 and have 9-year-old twin sons, John and Michael, per Us Weekly. De los Reyes also had a son from prior relationship, Caylen, 26.
According to Saum’s Hallmark bio, the family split their time between Los Angeles and New York. Though Saum and de los Reyes did not post frequently about their relationship on social media, she gushed about her husband on his 54th birthday in November 2021.
Saum shared a photo of her de los Reyes and wrote, “happy birthday to my rock my compass and my bebesdaddy @delosreyeskamar you cute #scorpiobaby 🎉 🎉 🎂”
On his birthday in 2020, Saum simply wrote to him in a post, “you make everything better.”
Condolences were just beginning to roll in from colleagues and friends on Christmas Day afternoon. In a statement to Deadline, “All American” executive producer and showrunner Nkechi Okoro Carroll said, “We are absolutely devastated at the loss of Kamar. He was such a beloved member of our ‘All American’ family. He brought so much love, light and joy to the set every day, even during his final days. We are so grateful for every moment he spent with us.”
“Our hearts and sincere condolences are with Sherri, Caylen, Michael, John and the rest of Kamar’s family. Thank you for sharing him so generously with us and with the rest of the world. He truly was a gift. One we will cherish forever.”
Sherri Saum’s Hallmark Movie Was About a Widower Finding His Way Again
HallmarkJames Denton and Sherri Saum in Hallmark’s “Perfect Harmony”
Saum’s first Hallmark movie in 2022, “Perfect Harmony,” co-starred James Denton as a former pop star who was struggling to move forward with his music after the death of his wife.
When the two actors did a Facebook Live session for Hallmark, they discussed how Saum’s character, a college professor, inadvertently helped his character begin to open his heart again.
“I just got goosebumps,” Saum said after Denton pointed out that aspect of their onscreen connection. “You’re so dead on. It’s such a relatable thing. So many people have been through this in one way or the other and feel that guilt of ‘Can I move on?’ Or they want to freeze that time and not touch it again.”
Denton agreed that it can be hard for someone who’s lost a partner to move forward.
He said, “People get stuck and it’s understandable, in dealing with (thoughts of) ‘Am I disrespecting them if I move on?'”