“Half & Half” star Essence Atkins reunites with TV mom Valarie Pettiford: 'We laughed, we cried, we felt seen'

Kathleen PerriconeThu, May 28, 2026 at 2:05 AM UTC

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Essence Atkins and Valarie Pettiford, now and on 'Half & Half' in 2002
Credit: Valarie Pettiford/Instagram; CBS via GettyKey Points -

Half & Half stars Essence Atkins and Valarie Pettiford reunited over the weekend, 20 years after the UPN sitcom ended.

The comedy centered around paternal half-sisters, played by Atkins and Rachel True, and their mothers, as the estranged siblings learn to be friends as adults.

When Atkins got married in 2009, Pettiford was the musical entertainment at the reception.

Half & Half stars Essence Atkins and Valarie Pettiford feel full of gratitude after their long-awaited reunion.

The two played mother and daughter on the UPN series for four seasons until 2006. Over Memorial Day weekend, they joyfully reconnected two decades since the end of Half & Half.

"Back together again, got the world in a spin," Pettiford sang in an Instagram Reel, as she embraced Atkins.

They then shouted-out their TV characters, who were both named Deirdre, but went by "Big Dee Dee" and "Little Dee Dee."

Atkins reposted the video, adding her own sentiment of the special moment.

"The incomparable and amazing @valariepettiford! We laughed, we cried, we felt seen, celebrated and safe (all within the first 5 minutes)," she gushed. "Sometimes the mere sight of someone you love is healing."

Half & Half centered around Little Dee Dee and her paternal half-sister Mona (Rachel True), who were estranged during their childhood but are living in the same San Francisco apartment building as adults. Family Matters alum Telma Hopkins was also a series regular as Mona's meddling mother Phyllis, who often clashes with Big Dee Dee.

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'Half & Half' starred Rachel True, Telma Hopkins, Valarie Pettiford, and Essence Atkins
Credit: CBS via Getty

The show was just as memorable for its guest stars: Destiny's Child singer Michelle Williams, MC Lyte, Yvette Nicole Brown, Louis Gossett Jr., Joey Lawrence, and Everybody Loves Raymond's Estelle Harris, who played Mona's white grandmother.

Despite being one of the most-watched sitcoms on the network — and getting renewed for a fifth season — Half & Half was ultimately lost in the reshuffle when UPN merged with WB and CW in 2006.

But the bond between the TV mother and daughter remained unbroken. When Atkins married college football player Jaime Mendez in 2009, the Tony-nominated Pettiford performed at the wedding reception.

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Atkins welcomed a son, Varro, in 2011 and during the Covid lockdown, he discovered Half & Half, which was streaming on Netflix.

"It was so cute to watch my son go through the journey," she told Shirley's Temple host Shirley Ju last year. "He watched every episode, some of them multiple times. But the funny part was his favorite characters were the moms. He loved Big Dee Dee and he loved Phyllis."

on Entertainment Weekly

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