Patrick Stewart, Star Trek's Capt. Picard, dies at 86
His family announced on the actor's official account that he died Wednesday in Los Angeles after a brief illness linked to Alzheimer's disease.
British actor Patrick Stewart, who played Capt. Jean-Luc Picard in *Star Trek* and Professor Charles Xavier in *X-Men*, has died. He was 86. His family announced the death in a statement on the actor's official X account on Wednesday.
Stewart died "yesterday," the statement says, meaning Wednesday, Oct. 28, at his home in Los Angeles. His wife, Sunny Ozell, was with him. The family described his illness as "a brief and poignant journey" with Alzheimer's disease and Lewy body dementia.
Instead of flowers, the statement asks for donations to Johns Hopkins' Alzheimer's research and to the caregiver resources of the national Alzheimer's foundation.
Born in Mirfield, in Yorkshire, England, Stewart trained in the theater and spent many years with the Royal Shakespeare Company. His best-known role came in *Star Trek: The Next Generation* (1987-1994), which made him captain of the *Enterprise* and carried on through four films and the series *Picard*. From 2000, he was also Xavier, the leader of the mutants in the *X-Men* franchise.
He is set to return as Xavier in *Avengers: Doomsday*, due in December 2026. In April, he released an audiobook of Shakespeare's 154 sonnets, which he announced on his account on April 7.
