Ryan Seacrest Breaks Down Remembering Late Dad Gary: 'My Best Friend' Rachelle LewisNovember 2, 2025 at 5:36 AM 0 Kevin Winter/Getty Images for iHeartRadio Ryan Seacrest is remembering his father, Gary Lee Seacrest, days after his death. As Parade reported, condolences have been pouring in for Seacrest since he shared the news on Friday. The American Idol host revealed his father was surrounded by family when he died earlier this week.
- - Ryan Seacrest Breaks Down Remembering Late Dad Gary: 'My Best Friend'
Rachelle LewisNovember 2, 2025 at 5:36 AM
0
Kevin Winter/Getty Images for iHeartRadio
Ryan Seacrest is remembering his father, Gary Lee Seacrest, days after his death.
As Parade reported, condolences have been pouring in for Seacrest since he shared the news on Friday. The American Idol host revealed his father was surrounded by family when he died earlier this week.
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Seacrest opened up more about his final moments with his father, 79, on his podcast, On Air with Ryan Seacrest.
"He was in Atlanta, where we grew up. I was by his bedside over the last several days. I was by his bedside as he left us. My mother was by his bedside. My sister, we held his hand. We kissed his forehead. We watched every last moment with our father. It was the most difficult dichotomy and strange combination of feelings I've ever felt because of the difficulty and the toughness in seeing this happen," he shared.
The Wheel of Fortune host explained that he has experienced loss in his life, but it's nothing compared to losing a parent. Seacrest admitted there's nothing to describe how he feels, before sharing the final moments the family had with Gary.
"So my father, in his last hours, as we just sat there, he weakly mumbled that he loved us. And I remember him saying, I can see him laying in the bed. I can see his mouth slowly moving to the words, I love this family," Seacrest stated, adding that he was still with his mom, Constance Marie Zullinger, his sister Meredith Seacrest, his brother-in-law Jimmy Leach, and niece Flora.
Seacrest went on to share the final words Gary said to his family before his death.
"But as he said, without much strength or energy, that he loved us and that he was going to miss us. Oh, my God. He looked over at me and he... the power in the contact of eyes and his eyes were barely open, but he looked over at me and he said 'take care of your mom,'" he recalled.
"Oh, and he said to my sister and to Jimmy, 'take care of Flora, my granddaughter,' and then literally a few seconds later, he closed his eyes and he said, 'I've got to go, oh my gosh I've got to go.'"
"He knew. He was at peace. He said everything he wanted to say to us. He left at peace," he expressed.
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The Hollywood mogul choked up as he revealed he was able to ask his father if he was in pain before he died, and Gary shook his head no.
Seacrest didn't hold back, expressing that everything is different for him now. His priorities have pivoted, and life will never be the same for him, his mother, his sister, brother-in-law, and niece.
After recalling how his father was his biggest champion and remembering when Gary would show up at his football games and practices despite working all the time, Seacrest paid tribute to his beloved father.
"My father, Gary Seacrest, was an amazing man. He was my best friend. But, Dad, I know you're with us. We love you. You will be in our hearts. We will honor you every day. Thank you for blessing us with the traits that we have, the character we have, the family we have, the values we have," the American Idol host ended the podcast.
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Gary battled prostate cancer for years. Seacrest spoke about his father's journey this summer as Gary faced another setback, and at the same time, Constance has been dealing with her own cancer fight.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to Seacrest and his family at this time.
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This story was originally reported by Parade on Nov 1, 2025, where it first appeared in the Celebs section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Source: "AOL Entertainment"
Source: Entertainment
Published: November 02, 2025 at 12:00AM on Source: JAST MAG
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