It’s been 10 years since Everybody Loves Raymond child star Sawyer Sweeten died from suicide a couple of weeks before his 20th birthday in April 2015.
As Raymond creator Phil Rosenthal and the surviving cast members reunited to mark the hit family sitcom’s 30th anniversary, they spoke about Sawyer who played one of Ray (Ray Romano) and Debra’s (Patricia Heaton) three children alongside real-life siblings Madylin Sweeten and his twin brother Sullivan Sweeten.
Madylin, now a new mom herself, teared up as she and Sullivan joined Rosenthal, Romano, Heaton and fellow cast members Brad Garrett (Robert Barone) and Monica Horan (Amy MacDougall-Barone) on the recreated for the reunion Raymond set.
“Sawyer, of course, is no longer with us, and we miss him,” Romano said while addressing Madylin and Sullivan. “He, just like you are, was this bright energy.”
Sullivan spoke of their experience on the show. “Looking back, I wouldn’t change anything about it,” he said.
As for his brother’s tragic death, “None of us really expected what happened,” Sullivan said, adding, “But I try to think about the good moments. And oftentimes, that’s on the set.”
Madylin spoke of their family’s work with the National Suicide Prevention Hotline as a way to honor Sawyer.
Noting that suicide is the second leading cause of death for people between ages 18 to 25, she stressed, “but 90 percent of people who seek treatment are cured.”
The family’s partnership with the suicide prevention hotline includes an annual benefit, selling T-shirts in Sawyer’s memory to support it.
“It’s the hardest thing in the world to talk about, especially with family members who’ve lost someone, especially such a tragedy, someone at such a young age. I honestly didn’t know how it would go, but Madylin and Sullivan handled it beautifully,” Rosenthal told Deadline about the part of the reunion dedicated to Sawyer Sweeten. “I’m really proud of the way they did it. I’m really proud of them, that they would come on in a public way to talk about this, and then, you know what? Maybe they help somebody. Maybe someone will see this and get help.
“What’s better than that?,” Rosenthal continued. “We still celebrate Sawyer’s life and his life on the show and how cute and adorable and great the children were and we can still enjoy life ourselves, but we honor his memory and we try to help other people. That’s all we can do.”
In addition to Sawyer Sullivan, the special paid tribute to late cast members Doris Roberts and Peter Boyle as well as guest stars such as Fred Willard and Georgia Engel.
CBS’ Everybody Loves Raymond: 30th Anniversary Reunion is streaming on Paramount+.
