Kianna Underwood, a former child actress best known for her appearances on Nickelodeon, died Friday (Jan. 16) after being struck by two vehicles in a hit-and-run accident in Brooklyn, New York.
Underwood, 33, was struck around 6:50 a.m. while crossing the street against a red light at the intersection of Pitkin Avenue and Mother Gaston Boulevard in Brownsville. Police say a black 2021 Ford Explorer SUV, believed to have been traveling in the wrong direction, likely struck her first.
Video later obtained by authorities shows a black sedan, which struck Underwood following the initial collision, heading west on Pitkin Avenue, dragging the former star for two blocks along the commercial strip before her body became dislodged near Osborn Street.
The owner of the SUV, who lives near the scene of the incident, has been identified but has refused to speak with police without a lawyer, which he told authorities he’s in the process of obtaining.
While his vehicle was seized by police, authorities are in the process of determining whether he or someone else was behind the wheel at the time the vehicle struck Underwood. No charges have been filed against the owner.
The second driver of the sedan, which also fled the scene after being captured on video dragging Underwood’s body, has yet to be identified. The incident remains under active investigation.
Following her time on Nickelodeon, Underwood’s star seemed to fade, and she seemingly disappeared from the entertainment industry after receiving her last acting credit in 2005.
Upon news of Underwood’s passing, friends and former castmates opened up about the turmoil she had experienced in her personal life, which included struggles with homelessness and drug abuse, making her sudden death especially tragic for fans who remembered her early career.
Here’s everything we know about Kianna Underwood’s life, career, and grisly death.
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Early Beginnings
Image Credit: Amanda Edwards/Getty Images A New York City native, Underwood was born on November 28, 1992, and raised in Harlem’s notorious Abraham Lincoln NYCHA housing complex.
According to T.C. Jackson, a Lincoln Houses resident who helped jumpstart Underwood’s career by signing her to his modeling agency, her introduction to showbiz came after she was discovered by Jackson at 6 years old.
Underwood would appear in at least two fashion shows, as well as multiple commercials, before catching her big break with Nickelodeon. “She had real talent,” Jackson said of the slain star upon receiving news of her passing.
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A Star Is Born
Image Credit: Bruce Glikas/FilmMagic Underwood’s first big break came in 1998, when she landed a role in The 24 Hour Woman, a comedic film starring Rosie Perez, Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Patti LuPone, and Wendell Pierce.
Cast as Tanessha Labelle, the daughter of Jean-Baptiste and Pierce’s characters, Underwood also appeared as herself in the short-lived TV series Rock of Ages alongside hosts Marta Ravin, Ranardo Domeico Grays Godfrey, and Michael Collins in 2000.
Other notable credits on Underwood’s resume include a voiceover role as Dakota in the animated TV movie Santa Baby and a brief appearance in Death Of A Dynasty, the 2003 satirical film inspired by the fractured relationship between Roc-A-Fella Records founders Jay-Z and Damon Dash.
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The Nickelodeon Era
Image Credit: Frank Micelotta/Getty Images In 1999, Underwood was cast in a voiceover role in Bill Cosby‘s animated TV series Little Bill, a breakthrough that would make her an integral part of one of the defining children’s shows of its era.
Voicing Little Bill’s cousin, Fuchsia Glover, Underwood first appeared on the series’ third episode, The Dollar/The Choice, and would work alongside veteran actors Ruby Dee, Gregory Hines, and Phylicia Rashad, as well as future Everybody Hates Chris and Abbott Elementary star Tyler James Williams.
She appeared in 23 episodes across Little Bill’s four-season run and remained a cast member through the show’s final episode, which aired in February 2004.
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The Curtain Call
Image Credit: Bruce Glikas/FilmMagic In 2005, Underwood was tapped by Nickelodeon producers to join the cast of All That as Jamie Lynn Spears’ replacement after Spears left the cast for her own show on the network.
Appearing in All That‘s 10th season, Underwood was credited with several appearances throughout the show’s final run of its second iteration, with her last appearance coming during its 12th episode in 2005.
According to IMDb, the late star’s stint on All That was her last credited role in a television or film.
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Life After Fame
Image Credit: Theodore Parisienne/New York Daily News/Tribune News Service via Getty Images The life of a child star is often viewed as glamorous, but many former child actors and actresses have struggled to adjust after the spotlight dims, with some falling on hard times. Underwood was not immune to this reality, with the first crack being her parents’ and former managers’ split, causing the family to vacate their apartment in Lincoln Houses “roughly 10 to 15 years ago,” according to longtime friends.
“[Kianna] would come back to the Lincoln Houses about once a year. She didn’t stay long, but she always came back to Lincoln,” former neighbor Toya D. said of the slain actress. Another woman, who befriended Underwood in recent years, and others revealed that Underwood had been struggling with drug addiction and homelessness prior to her death, obstacles that kept her from attempting a comeback to acting.
“I tried to ask her [how she ended up on the streets.] She wouldn’t tell me how did she manage to get out here into this. I couldn’t find out,” the woman, unnamed, said. She added that, despite having family in Manhattan, she distanced herself to keep her personal battles hidden from them.
However, Underwood’s efforts to have her struggles go unnoticed weren’t enough to deter others from spreading awareness regarding her seemingly dire situation. In 2023, former Nickelodeon star Angelique Bates took to social media to call for Underwood’s former castmates to step in to ensure she receives proper treatment and assistance.
“I don’t know what the whole situation is,” Bates said on Instagram at the time. “You don’t know if there’s addiction. You don’t know if there’s mental illness. You don’t know what is at play right now,” she said, adding that fundraising wouldn’t be enough. “There has to be a plan to make sure that they’re getting all the proper assistance.”
