Gregg Leakes, best known for appearances on Bravo's hit series The Real Housewives of Atlanta with wife Nene Leakes, has passed away after a battle with colon cancer that he has been facing for several years. He was 66 years old at the time of his passing.
The Real Housewives star and real estate investor passed away three years after being diagnosed with stage 3 colon cancer, according to Variety. He had entered remission after six months of chemotherapy treatment. Sadly, Nene Leakes revealed over the summer that his cancer had returned, and recently shared that his cancer battle was going poorly. A publicist for the Leakes family confirmed news of Gregg Leakes' death, saying in a statement:
Today the Leakes family is in deep pain with a broken heart. After a long battle with cancer, Gregg Leakes has passed away peacefully in his home surrounded by all of his children, very close loved ones and wife Nene Leakes. We ask that you pray for peace and strength over their family and allow them to mourn in private during this very very difficult time.
Although Gregg Leakes' battle with cancer was not the focal point of The Real Housewives of Atlanta, the Bravo show did document some of what the family was facing with his cancer diagnosis. Nene Leakes was a main cast member on the Real Housewives of Atlanta from Seasons 1-7 before departing, then returned for Seasons 10-12, with her husband appearing in more than 80 episodes of the series.
Nene Leakes and Gregg Leakes first married in 1997, although they divorced in 2011. After reconciling, however, they remarried in 2013, and a Bravo series documented their wedding. The couple share a son, Brentt. Gregg Leakes was also father to five other children and stepfather to his wife's son, Bryson, from a previous relationship.
Tributes to Gregg Leakes have already begun pouring out on social media, including a touching message from Real Housewives executive producer Andy Cohen, who took to Twitter with some kind words both in his honor and in support of the Leakes family:
I am heartbroken over the passing of Gregg Leakes, a wonderful man. I jokingly called him 'Pastor Leakes' but in truth he was a strong voice of reason & commanded great respect among the entire #RHOA team. I am sending love and strength to [Nene Leakes] & the entire Leakes family.
While Gregg Leakes was obviously not one of the housewives of Real Housewives of Atlanta, his presence on the show was felt by many. In fact, the official Bravo TV Instagram account wasted no time in posting a sweet picture and kind message in his honor as well:
At the time of writing, Nene Leakes has not publicly commented on her husband's passing. Hopefully everybody will respect the family's request of being allowed to mourn in private, and fans will simply continue posting their own messages and keeping the family in their thoughts. Our sympathies here at CinemaBlend are with the family, friends, and loved ones of Gregg Leakes in this difficult time.
