Sherri Shepherd Confirms It Was Nia Long Who Confronted Her Over “Shading” Claims

After months of rumors, Sherri Shepherd finally confirmed that the mystery woman who pulled her aside at the Broadway opening of Othello was actress Nia Long.

The moment went down back in late March during the show’s opening night, and according to Shepherd, it was intense.

She first addressed the incident on her daytime talk show Sherri, describing a moment when a woman, who she initially referred to as an “unknown celebrity,” turned her around “forcefully” and accused her of “shading her a lot.”

While she didn’t name names at the time, Sherri recently said on The Breakfast Club on Monday, that it was, in fact, Nia Long.

“You don’t get to pull me and turn me around like we’re in a doggone cartoon and then walk away,” Sherri said on her show. She explained that after the interaction, she went to the bathroom during intermission and waited for Long to follow up, but that conversation never happened.

Sherri maintained that Long had her mistaken for someone else. “I know I didn’t shade you,” she said. “Matter of fact, when something scandalous came up about you, I was on your side when it happened.”

She added, “I would say to unnamed celebrity—‘cause we’ve known each other a long time—come sit on my couch so we can talk about it.”

That “scandalous” moment Sherri referenced likely ties back to Long’s split from former fiancé Ime Udoka in 2022.

Udoka, was accused of having an inappropriate relationship with a Boston Celtics staffer while still with Long. The two had been together since 2010, were engaged, and share a 13-year-old son, Kez.

Speaking on The Breakfast Club, Sherri cleared up any bad blood. “The only time I’ve ever talked about Nia Long is when she went through it with her partner,” she said. “I supported her and [said] that she deserves to have a good man to be with her.”

She continued, “There’s not a lot of Black women on TV, so I have no idea who she thought was shading her, but it was not me. I have no beef with Nia Long; I’m a fan of hers. We’re grown women, we’re both the same age, so we can discuss it. That’s why I invited her on my show.”

So far, Nia Long hasn’t responded publicly to Sherri’s invitation.