Patrick Stewart, the celebrated actor renowned for his iconic portrayals of Captain Jean-Luc Picard in the Star Trek universe and Professor Charles Xavier in the X-Men franchise, died on Wednesday at the age of 86. An Instagram post confirming the news stated that Stewart passed away after a short struggle with Alzheimer's Disease and Lewy Body Dementia.
Stewart's career spanned over six decades, beginning with Shakespearean stage productions and smaller television projects primarily in the UK before he achieved mainstream fame in 1987. He led the crew of the Enterprise in Star Trek: The Next Generation, a role that defined his legacy. Stewart starred as Picard for seven seasons of the series and reprised the character in four feature films within the broader franchise. He later returned to the role in the sequel series Star Trek: Picard, which ran for three seasons, with the final installment serving as a reunion for the original Next Generation cast.
Beyond Star Trek, Stewart is widely recognized for his portrayal of Professor Charles Xavier, the wheelchair-using leader of the X-Men. He first took on the role in the 2000 film and appeared in six installments of the franchise, including the standalone movie Logan. His final performance as Professor X is scheduled to appear in Avengers: Doomsday later this year.
Stewart's diverse filmography includes several other notable roles available for streaming. In the 1998 miniseries adaptation of Moby Dick, he starred as Captain Ahab alongside Gregory Peck and Henry Thomas. He also appeared in David Lynch's 1984 cult classic Dune as Gurney Halleck and voiced Pharaoh Seti I in the animated film The Prince of Egypt, sharing the screen with Val Kilmer and Ralph Fiennes.
In a departure from his usual heroic or authoritative characters, Stewart delivered a riveting performance as the villainous Darcy Banker in the 2015 thriller Green Room. He also showcased his comedic timing in the 1995 film Jeffrey, which starred Steven Weber, and appeared as a heightened version of himself in an episode of Ricky Gervais's series Extras.
Among his final projects is The Sheep Detectives, set for release in 2026 by Amazon MGM Studios. In this animated feature, Stewart voices Sir Ritchfield, an elder sheep who joins a group investigating the death of their shepherd, George Hardy, played by Hugh Jackman.
Sources: CNET.