Sir Patrick Stewart, Star Trek and X-Men Icon, Dead at 86

Published Oct 29, 2026, 3:50 PM EDT

A cinematic obsessive with the filmic palate of a starving raccoon, Rob London will watch pretty much anything once. With a mind like a steel trap, he's an endless fount of movie and TV trivia, borne from a misspent youth of watching monster movies on TV, perusing the sun-faded goods at the local video rental shop, and staining his fingers with ink from the Video Movie Guide. Areas of interest include science fiction, film noir, horror flicks, '70s disaster pictures, Bond movies, '90s action, giant robots, dinosaurs, super heroes, and the exuberantly schlocky output of Cannon Films. He also enjoys both Star Trek and Star Wars when they're good, and maybe even more when they're bad. As a Canadian, he also has a vested interest in Canadian movies and TV shows, especially the cheesier ones dubbed "Canuxploitation."

An expert on Marvel Comics, he has also written for the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe, and is a member of the Marvel Research Team. He can frequently be found pontificating on comic-book continuity or bemoaning the misfortunes of the Toronto Maple Leafs on his Twitter account.

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Patrick Stewart, the classically trained actor who became a genre legend on Star Trek: The Next Generation and the X-Men movies, has died. Stewart's family announced his death from Alzheimer's disease and Lewy body dementia this afternoon. Stewart was 86.

Born in Yorkshire on July 13, 1940, Patrick Stewart grew up in poverty, and endured physical abuse at the hands of his father. He befriended fellow future actor Brian Blessed in school, and both earned grants to attend the prestigious Bristol Old Vic Theatre School. Stewart soon became a member of the Royal Theatre Company, and began making appearances in British TV productions, including I, Claudius and Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. He began losing his hair in his teenage years, and seldom wore a hairpiece, which largely limited him to supporting roles. He did play memorable roles in a number of films in the 1980s, including John Boorman's Excalibur, David Lynch's Dune, and Tobe Hooper's Lifeforce.

Stewart's life changed dramatically in 1987 when he was offered the lead role in Star Trek: The Next Generation, the first live-action Star Trek series in over 20 years; Stewart was unfamiliar with the series, and largely disdainful of science fiction, but over the objections of his longtime friend and colleague Ian McKellen, he took the role, expecting the series to be cancelled within the year. Instead, the series became an enormous hit, and Stewart's Jean-Luc Picard became one of the most iconic characters in science fiction. Stewart would play the role for seven seasons of the series, then reprise it in four big-screen movies.

Stewart died in Los Angeles after a brief battle with Alzheimer's disease and Lewy body dementia. Collider extends our sympathies to Stewart's friends, family, colleagues, and fans.