Acting legend Sir Patrick Stewart dies at 86: Fans react

Now to remembering an acting legend, Sir Patrick Stewart, most well-known for his roles in the Star Trek and X-Men franchises, has sadly died at the age of 86. This is the 10 o'clock news. I'm Dawn Timoney. He died following a brief battle with Alzheimer's disease and Lewy body dementia, which was not publicly known. Definitely coming as a shock to his fans and the entertainment world. Stewart actually spent more time on the stage than in his roles as Captain Jean-Luc Picard and Professor Charles Xavier. In 2008, he earned a Tony Award nomination for his portrayal of the title character in William Shakespeare's Macbeth. Our Dylan Scott with a look back at his career and reaction from heartbroken fans. This is about saving the future of humanity. For more than 60 years, Sir Patrick Stewart dazzled global audiences on stage, television, and the silver screen. His legendary career being remembered Thursday after a family spokesperson delivered the heartbreaking news that Stewart had passed away Wednesday in his Los Angeles home after what was described as a brief and poignant journey with Alzheimer's disease and Lewy body dementia. He was 86. Yeah, it's really devastating. I just recently found out. And, you know, he's been one of my favorite actors basically all my life. Born in England, Stewart spent decades making a name for himself as an actor from the Royal Shakespeare Theatre to Broadway. In the late 80s, he took his career to new galaxies on television as beloved captain Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek The Next Generation. Get out! He brought such class and gravity to his roles. You know, it forced people to take it seriously. You know, people who might not have normally taken a science fiction show, a TV show seriously, they had to, you know, just because of his presence there. In the early 2000s, Stewart channeled yet another iconic role, this time on the big screen as Professor Charles Xavier in the hit Marvel series X-Men. I'm Professor Charles Xavier. I would absolutely say so as somebody who grew up, you know, only ever seeing him put in these roles of a wise mentor figure, both in Picard and in Professor X. I think that, you know, losing him feels in a way almost like losing a mentor up on the big screen. Stewart, who vowed to never retire, will appear on the big screen one more time in December, reprising his role as Professor X in Avengers Doomsday. Doomsday is coming up, so I'm re-watching all the X-Men movies, and it just doesn't feel real. He's in the movie as well, so it'll hurt not seeing him again, I guess, in a way. Patrick Stewart's legacy will continue to live on, including here in Philadelphia, where his presence is never too far away, like this autographed photo at Atomic City Comics here on South Street. I can vicariously live the leadership role through him and learn how to be an excellent leader. While getting a few laughs and just learning some lessons along the way. I love the Star Trek. I love the X-Men. And then she has eyes. It's just, like I said, it's hard to wrap my mind around this. Stewart is survived by his wife and two children. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions are asked to be made to the Johns Hopkins Alzheimer's Disease Research Fund and the Alzheimer's Foundation of America Caregiver Resources. Making it so, Dylan Scott, Fox 29 News. And from Captain Picard to Captain Kirk, William Shatner, among those paying tribute, saying in part, quote, from the stage to the bridge of the Enterprise, he brought intelligence, grace, and a deep sense of humanity to everything he did. Captain Picard stood for the best of us, and so did the man who played him.