Regina King recently honored the memory of her late son Ian Alexander Jr.
Appearing at the 2026 ‘Food & Wine’ Classic in Aspen, King spoke about her inspiration behind her wine brand MianU, according to PEOPLE.
“[Ian] can be completely committed to his point of view, but he can fully see somebody else’s feelings. He can notice when they’re hurt, they’re embarrassed, when they’re feeling left out, and that’s not an easy thing to be. I struggle with that,” King explained. “A lot of us struggle with that, you know, that thing of we’re just so locked into what we think. And we’re trying to prove ourselves right that we stop seeing the person right next to us.”
“Ian was always beautiful in that way. He was always generous at doing both. And he could stand 10 toes down in his truth, and he could still reach for you,” she continued. He can be funny, honest, stubborn, and tender all in the same moment.”
King also read one of Ian’s journal entries where “he described walking from Burbank, Calif. to Hollywood.”
“What was at first noisy cars became peaceful waves, all holding a unique and beautiful soul driving it,” King read. “At that moment, I chose not to dwell on what is lost or presently unattainable, but began ruminating on the possibility of what the present can be.”
In 2024, King founded MianU — pronounced “me and you” an orange wine company honoring her son and the pair’s mutual love for wine and community.
“Ian’s curiosity, his complexity, his art, his connection, his impeccable taste, the way he can take something ordinary, something loud, something chaotic and transform it, not by denying what it is, but by listening to it differently,” she said. “That is part of how MianU was born. Because if grief takes away the ordinary ways of creating new memories, then love has to find another way.”
In January 2022, Ian passed away just a few days after his 26th birthday. An accomplished musician and DJ, Ian was a mainstay by his mother’s side at major red carpet events. King has since spoken openly about her ongoing journey, describing it as “love that has no place to go.”