There are some voices you recognise before the person even appears on screen. Patrick Stewart had one of those voices. He had a voice that was both calm and powerful at the same time. He had the ability to make an ordinary sentence sound as though the future of the galaxy depended on everyone listening carefully. Unfortunately, that voice has now become silent.
Sir Patrick Stewart died at the age of 86 at his home in Los Angeles on Wednesday. At the time of his death, he was surrounded by loved ones including his wife, Sunny. His family said that he had experienced a “brief and poignant journey” with Alzheimer’s disease and Lewy body dementia. The diagnoses had not previously been made public. However, Variety confirmed the news on Thursday.
For millions of people, Stewart was Captain Jean-Luc Picard of the USS Enterprise in Star Trek: The Next Generation. This was in 1987. And boy was he a brilliant captain. Picard was the kind of man who preferred reason over violence. He believed in diplomacy and delivered the kind of speech that made everyone reconsider their life choices. And he definitely commanded a starship when things became difficult with all the attributes of a good leader.
Now, for some, Picard was just another actor, but for me, he represented something important. He had the knack of making intelligence feel heroic. In a world that was filled with phasers, hostile aliens and extremely questionable decisions involving the holodeck, his greatest strength was often his ability to think before acting. Now there’s something we don’t see too often anymore. Stewart played the character for seven seasons before returning in several films. Decades later, he stepped onto the bridge again for Star Trek: Picard. The series allowed audiences to meet an older version of the captain who carried regret, loss and the weight of everything he had survived.
Things got even more interesting when he assumed the role of Professor Charles Xavier, the founder of the X-Men in the 2000 film. And here again, he portrayed a leader who believed that conversation could prevent violence. Xavier wanted humans and mutants to live together, even when both groups repeatedly gave him reasons to reconsider that optimism. The role placed Stewart opposite his close friend Ian McKellen as Magneto. The two men could sit across from each other and turn a quiet conversation into a battle of ideologies. No explosions were required. Although, being an X-Men film, the explosions usually arrived eventually.
Their friendship continued away from the cameras. McKellen has described Stewart as a man people could rely on, admire and love. Hugh Jackman also paid tribute, calling him one of the greats of stage and screen. Tributes have also come from William Shatner, George Takei, Marvel Studios and many others who worked with him. But Stewart’s career reached far beyond spaceships and mutant schools. He spent years with the Royal Shakespeare Company, performing roles in Macbeth, Hamlet, The Tempest and several other productions. And also appeared on stages in the West End and on Broadway. He also performed alongside McKellen in Waiting for Godot and No Man’s Land.
And then, because he never seemed interested in taking himself too seriously, Stewart also embraced comedy. He appeared in Extras, voiced the deeply inappropriate Avery Bullock in American Dad! and played versions of himself that were far stranger than anything Captain Picard encountered in space. That range made him special.
The man could deliver Shakespeare, command the Enterprise, guide the X-Men and then turn around and say something completely ridiculous with the same magnificent voice. Stewart also used that voice beyond acting. After growing up in a home where his father subjected his mother to domestic violence, he became an advocate for survivors and supported Refuge.His work reminded people that violence inside a home harms more than the person enduring the attack. But also the children who carry it with them too.
His final screen appearance will be in Avengers: Doomsday, where he returns as Professor Xavier. The film arrives in December. Watching it will now feel very different for many of us. It was only a few months ago that Stewart said he could not imagine officially retiring because he would always be an actor. And it seems that he meant it. He continued working until the end, leaving behind more than six decades of performances.
Patrick Stewart gave us two of geek culture’s greatest leaders. But perhaps his real achievement was showing us that strength could be thoughtful. Authority could be compassionate. And a hero did not always need to raise his fist when raising an argument would do.
The captain may have left the bridge. But the journey he gave us will never be forgotten.
