British actor Patrick Stewart, known for his work in “Star Trek: The Next Generation” and the X-Men film franchise has died, according to a statement on his X account on Thursday.
The actor was born in Mirfield, west Yorkshire in northern England in 1940.
Stewart won worldwide fame with much-loved character Captain Jean-Luc Picard of the starship USS Enterprise in “Star Trek”.
His history playing Picard dates back to 1987 when he portrayed the character in the TV series “Star Trek: The Next Generation”, as well as in four feature films, the last of which was released in 2002.
Stewart had repeatedly refused efforts to lure him back to the sci-fi series.
However, the writers of its latest chapter, “Star Trek: Picard”, helped change his mind, with his character back on small screens this year after a two-decade break.
“I came back because it was irresistible,” Stewart said on the red carpet on January 15 ahead of a screening at a cinema in London’s Leicester Square.
Stewart also portrays mind-reading Professor Charles Xavier in the blockbuster superhero “X-Men” franchise from Marvel Comics. His archenemy Magneto is played by fellow British thespian Ian McKellan.
Scottish actor James McAvoy joined the cast of “X-Men: First Class” in 2010, a prequel to Fox’s superhero trilogy, to star as the younger wheelchair-bound Professor X, opposite Irish German actor Michael Fassbender as the youthful Magneto.
Once close friends, an eternal war rages between Professor X’s X-Men and Magneto’s Brotherhood.
Stewart’s Professor X also features in the “Wolverine” films, where Australian actor Hugh Jackman plays the title mutant role who possesses animal-keen senses and capabilities, as well as powerful self-healing powers.
Distinguished Shakespearean actor Stewart was knighted in 2009, age 69, by Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II for services to drama.
He was won the Laurence Olivier award for best supporting actor in 2009 for “Hamlet” and in 1979 for “Anthony and Cleopatra”. He also scooped a Grammy in 1996 for best spoken word album for children for “Peter and the Wolf”.
Stewart, a long-time Amnesty International supporter, called for the release of jailed Nobel Peace Prize winner Liu Xiaobo in December 2010. Liu, who was sentenced in China for “inciting subversion of state power” was recognised only hours earlier during the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize ceremony in Oslo, Norway.
Stewart made reference to China’s refusal to allow Liu Xiaobo to travel to Oslo to receive his prize.
