Sir Patrick Stewart, who died at 86 at his Los Angeles home on Wednesday, October 28, completed his final live-action role opposite longtime friend Ian McKellen in the upcoming Marvel film Avengers: Doomsday.
His family disclosed that the acclaimed actor had recently been living with Alzheimer's disease and Lewy body dementia, receiving care from his wife, singer-songwriter Sunny Ozell.
Stewart had already finished filming the blockbuster, which will now be released posthumously. Principal photography wrapped in September 2025 and the movie is scheduled to open in theaters on December 18, 2026.
Marvel confirmed that both Stewart and McKellen will appear in the picture, and their presence on set left a strong impression on younger Marvel talent.
Simu Liu, star of Shang-Chi, told PEOPLE in August, "So just getting to talk to them, getting to hang on set with them in between takes, it was the most starstruck I've ever been."
Fellow cast member Danny Ramirez spoke to CinemaBlend in July, saying, "When Sir Ian McKellen is speaking, you listen because you never know what nugget might change your life. And in the same way as Sir Patrick Stewart or anybody." He summed up Stewart's impact in two words: "Gravitas. Real gravitas." Ramirez added that he had watched old videos of the duo analyzing Shakespeare and was struck by their command of language.
Directors Joe and Anthony Russo also expressed excitement about directing Stewart, McKellen and the returning X-Men cast. Joe noted the brothers had once been fans watching the original movies at midnight screenings, adding, "And so to be able to work with those actors is like a dream come true for us."
The reunion follows nearly five decades of history between Stewart and McKellen. They first worked together at the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1977, though they did not become close friends until making the first X-Men film years later, when adjoining trailers allowed them to spend long periods together.
Stewart once said the pair had become "like brothers," a bond that extended beyond sets and stages. Their friendship was public when Stewart kissed McKellen on stage at the Empire Awards in 2017, and McKellen even officiated Stewart's 2013 wedding to Ozell after becoming ordained for the ceremony.
Both actors have shared the stage in productions such as Waiting for Godot and No Man's Land. In the X-Men franchise, Stewart played Professor Charles Xavier while McKellen portrayed Magneto, placing the friends on opposite sides of a defining rivalry. Avengers: Doomsday brings them back to those roles more than two decades after their first joint appearance.
Stewart remained active in his final years, with voice work in the 2026 film The Sheep Detectives, the Prime Video comedy Bait, and American Dad! where he continued voicing CIA deputy director Avery Bullock. Earlier credits included his return as Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek: Picard (ended 2023) and as Professor Xavier in 2022's Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
His last public sighting was supporting Huddersfield Town in November 2024; the club later paid tribute to the lifelong fan after his death.
