Ryan Dorsey Shares Heartbreaking Insights on Naya Rivera’s Death

LOS ANGELES, Calif. — In his first sit-down interview since the tragic death of Naya Rivera, her ex-husband Ryan Dorsey opened up about the lasting impact on their son, Josey, now 9. Rivera, who was 33 at the time of her death, drowned at Lake Piru during a boating outing with Josey on July 8, 2020.

Dorsey, 41, revealed in an interview with People that Josey still grapples with guilt over not being able to save his mother. According to Dorsey, Josey often recounts a moment from that day when he hesitated to throw a rope to Rivera due to a spider on it. “Something he’s said over and over is that he was trying to find a life raft, and there was a rope, but there was a big spider on the rope, and he was too scared to throw it,” Dorsey said. “I keep reassuring him, ‘Buddy, that rope wasn’t going to be long enough.’”

Dorsey explained that the incident has haunted Josey since he was only 4 years old when the tragedy occurred. “He was trying to find his way back; he wasn’t being careless,” Dorsey emphasized.

That fateful day started with moments of joy but quickly turned tragic. Dorsey recalled that Josey was initially nervous about swimming due to the windy conditions, but Rivera encouraged him not to be afraid. After spending some time in the water, Rivera noticed their rental boat drifting and instructed Josey to swim back.

“He said the last thing she said was his name, and then she went under, and he didn’t see her anymore,” Dorsey explained, visibly shaken by the memory. “It just rocks my world that he had to witness her last moments.”

Upon learning that Rivera was missing, Dorsey was in a supermarket and received a call from her mother’s husband. “I collapsed into a pallet of drinks. I feared the worst,” he said. He drove 145 miles to Lake Piru, frantic to reach his son. “I drove 100-something the whole way with my four-way hazards on, chain-smoking cigarettes — and I don’t even smoke, really — and just crying,” he recounted.

Five days after the tragic incident, Rivera’s body was recovered from Lake Piru. Dorsey’s relief at finding Josey safe, sleeping alone on the boat, was bittersweet. “If we’d have lost both Naya and Josey, I don’t know how I would continue on with my life,” he stated. “I don’t know what I would’ve done, but I’m sure it wouldn’t have been good.”

As Dorsey and Josey navigate life without Rivera, the holidays have proven particularly challenging. “We made this book of memories for Josey that sits by his bed, and during the holidays, he was crying looking at it,” Dorsey shared. “You can only give him a hug and tell him, ‘I know, life is not fair. Bad things happen and there’s no reason for it, and you just have to do your best to be a good person.’”

Dorsey expressed the difficulty in explaining such profound loss, stating, “It’s hard trying to explain things that you can’t really make sense of no matter what age you are. I’m not a big believer in everything happens for a reason because I can’t ever think of a reason why he doesn’t have his mom.”

Despite the adversity, Dorsey affirmed that Josey remains a joyful child. “He wakes up happy, all energy,” Dorsey said. “I’m trying to be the best parent that I can be and raise a good little man. He gives me a reason to keep going with my life.”