Patrick Stewart Dies at 86, Star Trek Icon
Patrick Stewart dies at 86, his family announced on Thursday. The actor played Captain Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek and Professor Charles Xavier in X-Men. He died at his home in Los Angeles on Wednesday, October 28.
His family said he died in the care of his wife, Sunny Ozell. It cited a brief journey with Alzheimer’s disease and Lewy body dementia. The statement was posted to his social media accounts on Thursday, October 29, and confirmed by his longtime spokesperson, Kelly Bush Novak. News of his death reached readers in Pakistan in the early hours of Friday, October 30.
“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.
Patrick Stewart dies: from Mirfield to the Enterprise
Stewart was born on July 13, 1940, in Mirfield, in the West Riding of Yorkshire, England. He grew up in poverty. His father returned from the Second World War an alcoholic who suffered from post-traumatic stress and abused Stewart’s mother, and Stewart later said he put his own body between them to try to protect her.
A schoolteacher introduced him to Shakespeare at 12, through The Merchant of Venice. Acting became a safe space for him from that point on. He started losing his hair at 17 and was bald by 19.
He became an actor at 18 and built his name on the stage. He joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in the 1960s and appeared in more than 60 of its productions. He won three Olivier awards, including his first in 1979 for Antony and Cleopatra, and earned a Tony award nomination for his stage work.
Picard, the captain who thought first
Stewart was 47 when he was hired to play Captain Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation. The series ran from 1987 to 1994, across seven seasons and 176 episodes. He later played Picard in four feature films. He returned to the role in Star Trek: Picard, which ran from 2020 to 2023.
He had debated taking the part at all, and his friend Ian McKellen advised him to stay in the theatre. Stewart took the role anyway, and it made him a global star well into his 80s.
Picard contrasted with Captain James T. Kirk, the swashbuckling hero of the original series played by William Shatner. Picard was cerebral and disciplined. He led with diplomacy and moral argument rather than force. His catchphrases, “Make it so” and “Engage”, entered everyday language far beyond science fiction fans.
Stewart later said the work improved as the series went on. He faulted his own early portrayal as too stiff, and he credited his castmates with teaching him to loosen up.
Professor X and a second franchise
Stewart found a second global audience as Professor Charles Xavier, the wheelchair-using telepathic leader of the mutants in X-Men. He first played the role in X-Men in 2000 and returned to it in several more films across two decades. CNN noted that he was set to appear as Professor X in the forthcoming Avengers: Doomsday, a return that now stands as one of his final screen roles.
Beyond acting, his family statement pointed to his work for human rights, survivors of domestic violence, refugees, veterans’ mental health and animal welfare. He married three times and had two children; his third wife was American musician Sunny Ozell, whom he married in 2013.
Tributes pour in for Stewart
William Shatner, who led the original Star Trek series, described Stewart as “a friend, a colleague, and a magnificent actor” who “brought intelligence, grace, and a deep sense of humanity to everything he did”.
Marvel remembered him as “a singular talent, a generous collaborator, and a true gentleman”.
His family’s statement closed with words from his memoir, Making It So: “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.”
How old was Patrick Stewart when he died?
What did Patrick Stewart die of?
What was Patrick Stewart best known for?
When was Patrick Stewart knighted?
Queen Elizabeth II knighted him in 2010 for his services to drama.
