British acting legend Patrick Stewart, famed for his roles as Captain Jean-Luc Picard in “Star Trek: The Next Generation” and Professor Charles X. Xavier in the “X-Men” films, has died. He was 86.
Stewart died Wednesday at his home in Los Angeles following “a brief and poignant journey with Alzheimer’s disease and Lewy body dementia” according to his longtime spokesperson Kelly Bush Novak. She says in a statement:
“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. We will forever cherish the peaceful ease and reflection on his face, an enduring reminder of his invincible grace.”
The legendary Shakespearean stage veteran racked up decades of classical theater work and the occasional British television job in legendary works including “I Claudius,” a brief appearace in the original “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy” and awards nominated work for “Moby Dick” and “The Lion in Winter”.
In 1987 he became known to a whole generation a world over as Jean-Luc Picard, captain of the U.S.S. Enterprise-D on “Star Trek: The Next Generation”. He signed on thinking the show would only go for one season; it lasted seven seasons and 178 episodes with episodes like “The Best of Both Worlds” and “Yesterday’s Enterprise” becoming defining moments of sci-fi television.
Stewart reprised the role in four films and the three-season streaming series “Star Trek: Picard”.
After it ended, he took on the role of Professor Charles Xavier in Bryan Singer’s “X-Men” and ended up playing the role in four X-Men films, three Wolverine films, the “Doctor Strange” sequel, and the upcoming “Avengers: Doomsday”.
Of his two more famous roles, he previous told THR: “Both of them … I immensely admired for their morality, for their kindness, for their sensitivity, for their compassion. Even for their intellectual capacities. Playing Jean-Luc for all those years had a real impact on me.”
He also starred in Starz’s “Blunt Talk” series and had appearances on film starting with John Boorman’s “Excalibur” and David Lynch’s “Dune” through “Jeffrey,” “Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius,” “Conspiracy Theory,” and “The Sheep Detectives” among many others.
Our sincerest condolences go out to his family, friends and many fans.
Hailing Frequencies Closed, Sir.
Source: THR
