Charles Xavier from X-Men and Captain Picard from Star Trek: Patrick Stewart is dead
The British actor, a huge stage actor who became a science fiction icon thanks to Star Trek and X-Men, died at the age of 86 at his home in Los Angeles. He suffered from Alzheimer’s disease and Lewy body dementia.
He is a major figure in science fiction who disappears.
Patrick Stewart, unforgettable Captain Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation and Professor Charles Xavier in the X-Men saga, died Wednesday October 28 at his home in Los Angeles. He was 86 years old. According to a press release published on his official accounts, the actor succumbed after a journey described by his loved ones as brief and poignant in the face of Alzheimer’s disease and Lewy body dementia.
“His deep voice and singular talent will forever be associated with unforgettable performances across genres. He explored the human condition in all its poetic complexity and brought hope, not only to the far reaches of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but to science fiction’s iconic final frontier, aboard the starship Enterprise,” the statement said.
Those close to him also salute his commitment to human rights, victims of domestic violence, refugees, veterans and animal protection. Knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 2010, Sir Patrick Stewart was also a motorsport enthusiast and a keen supporter of the Huddersfield football club, his hometown.
In the famous X-Men franchise, the actor played Professor Xavier, mentor of mutants, opposite his friend Ian McKellen, who played Magneto. The two actors had formed a deep friendship over the course of the films. Patrick Stewart will thus share the poster with him one last time in Avengers: Doomsday, expected in December 2026. He also took over the role of Jean-Luc Picard in the series Star Trek: Picard, broadcast between 2020 and 2023.
Shakespearean actor before becoming a pop culture icon
Before conquering Hollywood and the stars, Patrick Stewart had first devoted nearly twenty years of his career to classical theater, notably within the Royal Shakespeare Company, which he had joined in 1966. He had performed numerous roles in the repertoire, from Shakespeare to Harold Pinter, before making his debut on Broadway in 1971 in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, directed by Peter Brook. His theater training fueled a career rewarded with several distinctions, including three Laurence Olivier Awards. In 2008, his performance of Macbeth also earned him a Tony Award nomination. He never gave up on stage, even after becoming an international star.
His first steps in cinema led him to two worlds that would mark his career. In 1981, he played Leondegrance in Excalibur, John Boorman’s retelling of the Arthurian legend. Three years later, he played Gurney Halleck in David Lynch’s adaptation of Dune.
But it was in 1987 that his career took on a new dimension. Patrick Stewart lands the role of Captain Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation. The series, which aired until 1994, made him one of the most iconic faces of the franchise. He will then find his crew in the cinema in several spin-off films, from First Contact, to Star Trek: Insurrection or Star Trek: Nemesis.
His Picard, a thoughtful and humanist captain, establishes himself as one of the great characters of television science fiction.
Professor X, the other major role of his life
In 2000, Patrick Stewart joined another saga destined to have a lasting impact on popular culture: X-Men.
In the guise of Professor Charles Xavier, founder of the school for young mutants, he embodies a figure of wisdom and tolerance, convinced that humans and mutants can learn to live together.
He will reprise the role in X-Men 2, then X-Men: The Last Stand, and the spin-off X-Men Origins: Wolverine, then Wolverine: The Battle of the Undying before Logan and finally X-Men: Days of Future Past. His friendship with Ian McKellen, his on-screen adversary, will become one of the most endearing stories of the saga.
Patrick Stewart has been married three times. In 2013, he married singer Sunny Ozell, in a ceremony officiated by Ian McKellen. He leaves behind two children.
