First posted on Instagram
Sir Patrick Stewart, the classically trained English actor who commanded the starship Enterprise as Captain Jean-Luc Picard in "Star Trek: The Next Generation" and led the X-Men as Professor Charles Xavier, has died at 86.
Stewart died on Wednesday, October 28, at his home in Los Angeles, according to a statement his family posted to his official social media accounts on Thursday, October 29. He was in the care of his wife, Sunny Ozell, following what the family called "a brief and poignant journey with Alzheimer's Disease and Lewy Body Dementia." His longtime spokesperson, Kelly Bush Novak, confirmed the death.
"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 family statement said. "He has been held in the warm embrace of family and friends, surrounded by live music, prayer, tears, laughter, and the kind of profound emotion that only he could inspire after a lifetime of devotion to us all."
Born July 13, 1940, in Mirfield, in England's West Riding of Yorkshire, Stewart built his reputation on the stage as a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company, which he joined in 1966 after training at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School. He was 47 when he took the role that made him a household name: Picard, the measured captain of "Star Trek: The Next Generation," which ran from 1987 to 1994 across seven seasons and 176 episodes. He returned to the part in four feature films and again, in his 80s, in "Star Trek: Picard," which ran from 2020 to 2023.
Stewart found a second franchise-defining role when he was cast as the telepathic Professor Charles Xavier in 2000's "X-Men," starring alongside longtime friend Ian McKellen; he reprised the character in six sequels and cameoed as Xavier in "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness."
Beyond the two franchises, Stewart's career spanned nearly six decades across stage, screen and television. He was a three-time Olivier Award winner and a Tony nominee, earned Emmy, Golden Globe and SAG Award nominations, and was knighted in 2010 for services to drama. His family said he will be remembered for "the dignity, compassion and humanity he brought to every role — in his art and life," and asked that, in lieu of flowers, memorial contributions be made to the Johns Hopkins Alzheimer's Disease Research Center Fund and the Alzheimer's Foundation of America.