Taraji P. Henson Passed on Met Gala for John Singleton's Funeral

All the brightest stars might have traveled to the MET last Monday for the annual MET Gala, but Taraji P. Henson chose to skip it to go to John Singleton's funeral.

The "Empire" star has been a staple at the prestigious MET Gala, but this year, she opted not to go to head to the private funeral of her good colleague and friend, John Singleton. He was put to rest last Monday at the Angelus Funeral Home in Los Angeles, and Taraji made sure to bid him goodbye one last time.

Alongside Henson that night included Nia Long, Ludacris, Ice Cube, and Tyrese. She announced that she decided to skip the MET Gala through reposting Vera Wang's statement.

Taraji and Vera Wang

In the statement, Vera shared that she was missing Taraji that night, to which Taraji responded:

“Y’all I was supposed to be [Vera Wang’s] date tonight for the [Met Gala] but as some of you may know I had to bury my dear sweet friend John Singleton today in LA. I had to back out of the Met because my head would NOT have been in the game.”

Of course, appreciative of how Vera Wang has been understanding about the whole ordeal despite Taraji having to back out at the last minute, she acknowledged her friend and said that next year, nothing was going to stop them from looking stunning together at the next MET Gala.

“[Vera Wang] is such a classy lady. She sent flowers and totally understood my position. I LOVE YOU FOREVER [Vera Wang]. NEXT YEAR WILL BE THE CHARM FOR US!!! GOOD LUCK TONIGHT!!!”

Taraji's work with John Singleton

Taraji P. Henson has worked with the late director numerous times, including her breakout role in "Baby Boy" and "Hustle and Flow." This said, John Singleton has been an influential part of the actress' life, and she will never forget that.

In fact, aside from working together on films, the two became good friends. They have been together through it all, that even when Henson received her own Hollywood Walk of Fame star, John Singleton was there to support and watch.

“You gave me my first big break in #BabyBoy and again in #HustleandFlow you believed in me when Hollywood did not get me at all!! Throughout my career when I needed advice it was YOU I called and you answered EACH AND EVERY TIME with sound advice.”

John Singleton's death

John Singleton suffered a major stroke on April 17, 2019. He initially checked himself into Cedars-Sinai Medical Center for leg pain, but it turns out that it was because of the stroke. On April 29, his family revealed that the director passed away after being taken off of life support at 51-years-old.

Rest In Peace, Director John.