celebrity kids

Nikita Pearl Waligwa -- a young actress who starred in a Ugandan Disney movie about a chess prodigy -- has reportedly died ... this after battling health issues a few years earlier.

According to the Ugandan news outlet, The Daily Monitor, Nikita recently passed away. While they don't say exactly how, the paper seems to link her death to a 2016 diagnosis ... which found she had a tumor in her brain. Unclear if she was fighting full-blown cancer.

Even more tragic ... the Monitor says a funding campaign was started for Nikita to get treatment in India, because local doctors were quoted as not having the proper equipment.

As for her acting career, it appears she only starred in the one Disney flick, "Queen of Katwe," playing a friend of the actual chess prodigy, Phiona Mutesi. It also featured Lupita Nyong'o and David Oyelowo -- the film's got a great Rotten Tomatoes score, critics loved it.

Nikita was only 15 years old.

Before this Valentine's girl was starring in TV series' and movies, she was born in Chicago and moved to Los Angeles when she was only 6 years old to jump-start her acting career.

She made her TV debut when she just 5 months old, as a baby on "ER." She was named one of Time magazine's Top 25 most influential teens in 2014.

You may recognize her now from the title role in the Netflix series, "Chilling Adventures of Sabrina" and she's got a new show with Diane Kruger coming soon on Quibi.

Dwyane Wade's oldest son, Zaire, is making it crystal clear he will always have his sibling's back ... posting an emotional message to Zaya after coming out as transgender.

The NBA legend appeared on 'The Ellen Show' Tuesday and revealed his 12-year-old identified as female ... and shared how his family is supporting her.

18-year-old Zaire is now speaking out on the announcement ... saying "I have been blessed to have my best friend, Zaya with me for 12 years."

"We did everything together...we fought, we played, we laughed and we cried. But the one thing we never did was leave each other behind... "

Zaire continued ... "I’ve told you that I would lay my life down to make sure you are ten toes down and happy on this earth."

"I don’t care what they think Z, you are my best friend and I love you kid, and if it means anything, just know there’s no love lost on this side."

Zaire's always been supportive of Zaya ... and even went with her to the Miami Pride parade last year.

As for Zaya, she spoke out against those who may disagree with her announcement ... saying "What's the point of being on this earth if you're gonna try to be someone you're not? It's like you're not even living as yourself, which is like the dumbest concept to me."

Before this adorable tyke would grow up to become a star on the stage and screen, he was born and raised in New Mexico ... where he began his career as a child actor and got discovered at a drama camp by a famous playwright and screenwriter.

Though his first big acting role was in a 1988 Whoopi Goldberg movie, he's better known for playing the titular character in a medical drama series on television the following year ... which ran for 4 seasons and earned him a Golden Globe nomination.

After that, he starred in a handful of TV movies and a cult classic sci-fi film, landed several guest spots ... and made his way to Broadway, where he'd eventually win a Tony Award in 2014 for Lead Actor in a Musical.

All this, and it doesn't even include his most-famous sitcom character ... which earned him Emmy noms every year from 2007 to 2010.

She's a Jersey girl who went to school in Maryland and known by friends as Christine Flores ... but you know her by a different name. She's Cuban-American and grew up as a huge Janet Jackson fan. It wasn't long before she signed to Def Jam ... at just 19 years old.

She blew up after just a couple of albums ... working alongside Jay-Z and mega-producer L.A. Reid when her third album came around in 2005. She enjoyed commercial success as a singer but her dream was to be an actress.

She achieved that dream ... earning her first lead in the 2003 flick "Love Don't Cost a Thing."

Here's Beyonce and Blue Ivy looking like walking, talking advertisements for Queen Bey's new clothing line collab with Adidas.

Beyonce and Blue Ivy stepped out Thursday in some matching gear from the Adidas x Ivy Park activewear collection ... spending part of their day fabric shopping at Mood Fabrics in New York City, with NY Fashion Week in full swing.

As we've reported ... Beyonce's been hooking up her famous friends with HUGE care packages from the collection ... including Missy Elliott, Cardi B, Zendaya, Ellen DeGeneres, Hailey Bieber, Janelle Monáe and Kelly Rowland ... so you just knew it was only a matter of time before Blue Ivy got in on the action.

Seems like Beyonce and Jay-Z's daughter is really into the big shopping spree too.

As you know ... Beyonce went full thirst trap to promote the clothing line ... but mama's way more modest with Blue Ivy in tow.

This young gal with golden locks was born and raised in South Africa, but would kick-start her career in America ... and go on to star in "The Italian Job."

Talk about cultured.

Though she's a mega movie star now, she began as a model and a dancer ... until a knee injury forced her to try something else. So, she moved to L.A. in the mid-'90s and landed a few small acting roles ... before breaking out in a devilish Keanu Reeves film.

Things only went up from there, as she soon became one of Hollywood's most popular leading ladies ... and won an Academy Award for Best Actress at the 2004 Oscars.

Since then, she's continued to star in blockbusters along with more low-key dramedies ... and she just racked up a third Oscar nom for playing a FOX News blonde.

Before this cute kid was kicking ass and taking lumps on TV as a bonafide badass, she was curled up with a good book ... and an even sweeter 'do.

This gal went on to star in hit shows like "Blindspot," "Kyle XY," "Watch Over Me," and "The Brink." She's starred in even more action flicks like "The Last Stand" and a bunch of "Thor" movies, in which she plays one of the heavenly, hammer-wielding gods.

She's known for doing some of her own stunts -- and has sometimes suffered serious injuries because of it ... like breaking parts of her back, her shoulders, fingers and nose. Ever the trooper though, she always finds a way back on screen and in our hearts!

Oh, and she also famously cut these pretty locks to play a classic Jane Doe character. Not to worry though ... her hair's grown back on screen before.

Kylie Jenner and Travis Scott pulled out all of the stops and more for Stormi's, second birthday.

The party was insane .... a crossover between "Trolls" and "Frozen." Check out the video and you'll see the party we never had.

As for who showed up ... Hailey Bieber, Kourtney, Khloe and Kim Kardashian, Kris Jenner and Corey Gamble, Sofia Richie, Caitlyn Jenner and Sophia Hutchins, John Legend, Chrissy Tiegen and Luna, Kimora Lee Simmons, Lalika and Khadijah Hagg, Rose Bertram, Jaden Smith and Draya Michele.

If this all rings a bell, this is the second annual StormiWorld, and the parents claim this one's better than the first.

Before this curly cutie grew up to be a model and actress, she grew up with red hair and bangs in Florida. She was born in Pembroke Pines and raised by a single mother. She'd eventually work as a child actress to help support the fam. She started modeling when she was just 6 weeks old, seriously. She's appeared in over 30 commercials including Neutrogena.

Some of her campaigns have also included Guess Jeans, Tommy Hilfiger and Ralph Lauren. She's graced the cover of Teen Vogue, Shape and Seventeen.

She'd later land a role as CeCe Jones on the Disney Channel series "Shake It Up." She's also appeared in several films including "Blended," "The DUFF," "Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip" and "Amityville: The Awakening."

Before this kid became a serious workaholic in Hollywood, it almost actually never happened. He was riding his bike before by a cement truck in Omaha ran him over when he was just 11 years old. The truck dragged him for 500 feet. He went into a coma and reportedly woke up 2 weeks later. He required 25 surgeries and nearly had both of his legs amputated.

It turned out, the bike took the brunt end of the truck's hit. Over time, he regained mobility and turned to comedy. He and his friends eventually moved to L.A. and created a hilarious series on Comedy Central.

He can also be seen in "Pitch Perfect" and "Modern Family," among other things.

This short-haired boy would grow up to become one of the most famous DJ's in the world ... and grow out his long locks.

Though born in Miami, he grew up on the West Coast in Newport Beach and went to college at UC Santa Barbara. While there, he produced do-it-yourself records and ran underground concerts ... demonstrating his enthusiasm for music.

He founded his own label before he turned 20, and began putting out work by various electro house artists ... and producing popular remixes.

His fame rose through relentless touring, and before long ... he became the highest-grossing dance artist in North America.

He's collaborated with artists like Linkin Park, LMFAO, Fall Out Boy, blink-182, Iggy Azalea and the Backstreet Boys ... just to name a few.

Recently, he launched his own pizza chain ... following in the restaurateur footsteps of his father, who's the founder of Benihana.

Kylie Jenner's put up a billboard smack in the middle of WeHo that kills 2 birds with one stone -- celebrating Stormi's birthday and hawks the kiddo's new makeup collection.

The massive bday card -- in a prime location on Santa Monica Blvd -- shows Kylie gently cradling Stormi, who turns 2 on February 1. Obviously NOT coincidentally, Kylie's also adding to her cosmetics empire on that day ...with makeup products inspired by Stormi.

Kylie's dubbed the collection, naturally, the Stormi Collection -- and says it's something she's been waiting for since the moment she found out she was pregnant.

She says it's dedicated to Stormi and inspired by her, but the kiddo also lent a helping hand. There are butterfly-themed packages of lip kits, blushes and mini eye shadow palettes with pastel and glitter shades.

At this rate, Stormi might end up snatching Mom's crown for youngest billionaire in history.

Shareef O'Neal is done at UCLA ... Shaq's son just announced he's transferring from the school after less than two years -- and it's unclear where his next stop will be.

"A part of my heart will always be at UCLA figuratively and literally," Shareef said in an emotional goodbye letter to the university. "I'm looking forward to the next chapter, wherever that may be."

Shareef came to UCLA in 2018 with sky-high expectations ... the 6-foot-9 forward was nationally ranked and had superstar potential.

But, his freshman season ended before it began after UCLA doctors discovered an irregularity with his heart ... and he was forced to undergo scary surgery to fix the issue.

This smiling little boy in stripes was born and raised in Akron, Ohio ... but grew up to become a worldwide superstar, thanks to his basketball skills.

Though raised by his mom, he also grew up with the family of a local youth football coach, who introduced him to hoops when he was 9 years old. He soon began playing AAU ball, where he excelled with his teammates.

He'd go on to attend a private Catholic high school and lead his team to a state title as a freshman ... and only gained more national -- and NBA -- attention from there. He was the first sophomore named Ohio Mr. Basketball as he led his team to another title, but after losing in the championship his junior year, he tried to enter the NBA early ... to no avail.

It's okay, though ... he won this third state title as a senior and became the #1 overall pick in the 2003 NBA Draft.

The rest is pretty much history -- possibly the greatest history of all-time -- but he's still in the league adding to his legacy ... which is already chock-full of rings and MVP awards.

This blondie was born in the mean streets (kidding) of Santa Monica and grew up to be a real badass and action star. He actually didn't wanna be an actor at all but he got bitten by the acting bug in high school and the rest was history.

His first major big-screen role came in the 1985 classic "The Goonies" ... and he had several TV roles, but he'd ultimately shift back to the big screen where it took him YEARS to find success. He landed in "Grindhouse," written by Quentin Tarantino, but his big breaks came in "American Gangster," "No Country for Old Men" and "Milk."