Imani Smith, known for her role as Young Nala in the Broadway production of Disney’s The Lion King from 2011 to 2012, died from a stabbing on Dec. 21, the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office in New Jersey confirmed.
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Police in Edison, New Jersey, responded to a 911 call and discovered the actress with stab wounds. According to the Middlesex Prosecutor’s Office, Smith was taken to Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
Imani Smith was 26.
35-year-old Jordan D. Jackson-Small was arrested in connection with Smith’s death. The prosecutor’s office stated that “Smith and Jackson-Small knew each other prior to the incident, thus it was not a random act of violence.”
In a GoFundMe post, Smith’s aunt, Kira Helper, identified Jackson-Small as Smith’s boyfriend.
Meanwhile, Jackson-Small was arrested without incident. He has been charged with first-degree murder, second-degree endangering the welfare of a child, third-degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, and fourth-degree unlawful possession of a weapon.
Family Pays Tribute to Imani Smith: ‘Her Whole Life Ahead of Her’
The GoFundMe page aimed to raise $80,000 to support Imani’s parents, who are “grieving their daughter while stepping in to raise her young son and support their two other children during this traumatic time.” So far, over $58,000 has been raised.
“Imani had her whole life ahead of her. She was vivacious, loving, and a fiercely talented person,” Helper wrote on the fundraising page.
“A true triple-threat performer, she most notably played the role of Young Nala on Broadway in Disney’s Lion King — an experience that reflected the joy, creativity, and light she put into the world,” her aunt added.
From September 27, 2011, to September 23, 2012, Smith played Young Nala in Disney’s The Lion King. According to Playbill, her mother, Monique Rance-Helper, is a hairstylist with experience in theater and film. She has worked on Broadway shows like The Lion King, Eclipsed, Once On This Island, The Lightning Thief, as well as the In the Heights movie and FX’s POSE.
Smith is survived by her 3-year-old son, her parents, as well as her aunt and two younger siblings.