Patrick Stewart‘s X-Men family is paying tribute to the late sci-fi icon.
Stewart died Wednesday at his home in Los Angeles at 86 following “a brief and poignant journey with Alzheimer’s disease and Lewy body dementia,” longtime spokesperson Kelly Bush Novak announced.
“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,” Bush Novak wrote. “We will forever cherish the peaceful ease and reflection on his face, an enduring reminder of his invincible grace.”
The actor led the original X-Men franchise, an adaptation of the Marvel comic books, for 20th Century Fox. Starring as Prof. Charles Xavier, he brought the role to the big screen in the first film in 2000, and went on to appear in X2: X-Men United (2003), X-Men: The Last Stand (2006), X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014) and Logan (2017).
He had subsequent cameos in Origins: Wolverine (2009) and The Wolverine (2013), and will reprise the role in Marvel’s upcoming Avengers: Doomsday this December. He’ll be joined in Doomsday by a few of his original X-Men co-stars from the Fox era, including Ian McKellen, James Marsden, Kelsey Grammer, Alan Cumming and Rebecca Romijn.
McKellen, whom starred as Magneto/Erik Lehnsherr, Prof. X’s rival turned friend in Fox’s X-Men movies, shared a tribute on his social media platforms on Thursday. He commemorated his Yorkshire roots, writing, “Patrick was defined by being born and bred in Yorkshire, the proud county in the north of England which he loved to the end. You could hear it in his accented voice and in the stern honesty with which he told you what he thought and felt. Yorkshiremen have no truck with half-truths or avoidance of big issues. He wore his heart on his sleeve, which made him a man to rely on, to admire and in my case, love.”
The Oscar nominee went on to reflect on how they first crossed paths at the Royal Shakespeare Company, and later a few years in London “when he told me about an offer to take over a leading part in Star Trek.”
He continued, “‘But Patrick think of your stage career in the U.K. Do you really want to risk — getting lost in Hollywood for years and years?’ Well, he took the risk and thank goodness for us all that he did for not just his devoted Trekkies but film and theatre audiences, who marvelled at his using international celebrity to star in a string of cinema successes (X-Men of course) and in great classical plays by Shakespeare, Ibsen, Arthur Miller, Peter Shaffer, Pinter and Beckett at Stratford-upon-Avon, in London’s West End and on Broadway.”
McKellen concluded his statement by noting Stewart’s final film, which they will appear in together as Magneto and Prof. X, respectively: “His farewell performance in Avengers: Doomsday is yet to be seen.”
Hugh Jackman, who graced the silver screen alongside Stewart in the X-Men movies as Wolverine/James “Logan” Howlett, wrote on Instagram, “We lost one of the greats of stage and screen today. And, in my book, a tremendous friend and man. I learned so much from him. I will miss you, Patrick Stewart, all of my days.”
Romijn, the original Mystique/Raven actress who will also star opposite Stewart in Doomsday, shared a video on Instagram. “I just heard the very sad news about the passing of my dear friend Patrick Stewart. I feel so grateful to have known him for the last 25 years, and to have been in his orbit for the last 25 years, both as a fellow mutant and as a fellow member of Starfleet,” she said.
“He was positively delicious, hilarious, naughty, incredible sense of humor,” Romijn continued. “And that booming voice of his that always spoke to the very back of the room. As every classically trained Shakespearean great needs to master, has always been an inspiration. I wanna send my condolences to his family, and I’ll miss my friend dearly. Rest in peace, Patrick.”
The Emmy nominee’s fellow Startrek: The Next Generation and X-Men co-star Famke Janssen, who portrayed Jean Grey/Phoenix in the film franchise, said in a statement shared with The Hollywood Reporter, “Patrick was a legend. One of the greats.”
“I had the pleasure and honor of working with him over several decades. First as Kamala opposite him as Captain Picard in Startrek: The Next Generation and later on as Jean Grey with Patrick embodying Professor X in the X-Men movies,” Janssen said. “You will be missed, Patrick, but never forgotten.”
Grammer, in a statement given to THR, wrote, “Sending love to Patrick and all of his fans and family. He was just terrific. Gave one of the greatest turns as a guest on Frasier — ever! A marvelous man. I liked him so. Time spent with him was always time well spent.”
As the Emmy winner noted, Stewart made a guest appearance on Frasier in the sitcom’s 11th season. They also collaborated on Fox’s X-Men movies, where Grammer played Beast/Dr. Hank McCoy, plus Marvel’s upcoming Doomsday.
Kevin Feige, the head of Marvel Studios, shared in a statement with THR, “I’ll never forget the first time I saw Sir Patrick Stewart on the set of the first X-Men. After years of knowing him as the inimitable Captain Picard, I was in awe — and he turned out to be everything I had seen on screen and more: brilliant, charming, warm, generous, with a quiet strength and gravitas. Away from the cameras, he was even more remarkable, with a wonderfully sharp sense of humor.”
“It was a true privilege to know him and to work with him,” he added. “His legacy lives on not only in decades of extraordinary work, but in the many, many people he mentored. He will be deeply missed.”
Marvel Studios additionally shared on social media, “All of us at Marvel Studios are deeply saddened by the passing of Sir Patrick Stewart. Sir Patrick brought Professor Charles Xavier to life with extraordinary grace, intelligence, and humanity, defining the character for generations of fans, from X-Men to Logan to Avengers: Doomsday. He was a singular talent, a generous collaborator, and a true gentleman. Our hearts go out to his wife Sunny, his children, his friends, and the countless fans around the world whose lives he touched with his art.”