Sir Patrick Stewart, the British actor who played Captain Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek and Professor Charles Xavier in the X-Men films, has died at the age of 86, Geo News reported.
He died on Wednesday at his home in Los Angeles, with his wife, Sunny Ozell, by his side, according to a statement shared by his team on Instagram.
“We announce with great sorrow the passing of Sir Patrick Stewart yesterday at his home in Los Angeles, in the loving care of his beloved wife Sunny, following a brief and poignant journey with Alzheimer’s Disease and Lewy Body Dementia,” the statement said.
His family asked that, instead of flowers, people make donations to the Johns Hopkins Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center Fund and the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America’s caregiver resources.
“A man to rely on”
Sir Ian McKellen, his close friend and X-Men co-star, called Stewart “the most respected and beloved actor of his generation”. “He wore his heart on his sleeve, which made him a man to rely on, to admire and in my case, love,” McKellen wrote.
The two met at the Royal Shakespeare Company in the 1970s. McKellen recalled warning his friend against getting lost in Hollywood when Stewart was offered the Star Trek role. Stewart took it anyway, and went on to win both science-fiction fans and stage audiences.
Other tributes:
- William Shatner, the original Captain Kirk, called him “a friend, a colleague, and a magnificent actor”, saying Captain Picard “stood for the best of us”.
- Dame Harriet Walter, a friend since the early 1980s, told BBC Newsnight: “I think the world’s going to be very poor without him.”
- Marvel Studios called him “a true gentleman”.
- Huddersfield Town, the football club he supported all his life, said he was “a Terrier in every sense”.
From Yorkshire to the stars
Born in Mirfield, West Yorkshire, Stewart was, in McKellen’s words, “defined by being born and bred in Yorkshire”. He served as Chancellor of the University of Huddersfield.
His stage career took in Shakespeare, Ibsen, Arthur Miller, Pinter and Beckett, at Stratford-upon-Avon, in London’s West End and on Broadway. He and McKellen shared the stage in Waiting for Godot in 2009 and No Man’s Land in 2013.
On screen, he became a global star as Captain Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation, and later as Professor X, the telepathic mentor of the X-Men, opposite McKellen’s Magneto.
One last film
His final performance, in Avengers: Doomsday, is due in cinemas in December. It will be the last time Stewart and McKellen appear on screen together.
Background: Alzheimer’s and Lewy body dementia
Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause of dementia, while Lewy body dementia is caused by abnormal protein deposits in the brain and can affect thinking, movement and sleep. His family’s request for donations to Alzheimer’s research reflects the disease that ended his life.
Why it matters
Stewart was one of the few actors equally at home in Shakespeare and science fiction. For millions who grew up with Star Trek, Captain Picard was a model of calm, principled leadership, and the role made a classically trained stage actor a household name around the world. His death, after a short illness, also draws attention to dementia, which his family has asked mourners to support research into.
This article draws on reporting by Geo News.
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