Sir Patrick Stewart reflected on distant relationship with his children before his death

Sir Patrick Stewart said his relationship with his children had become "practically non-existent" and caused him significant grief in the years before his death. In an October 2023 interview with the Irish Independent, he said, "There’s not a day that goes by that I’m not pained by the memory of my children, who they were and by a sense of responsibility that they became who they are in part because of me and my influence or lack of influence on them." He added that he had always put his acting work before his family.

Stewart, who died at age 86, was survived by his son Daniel, 58, and daughter Sophie, 54, from his former marriage to Sheila Falconer. He said his children, now adults in their 50s, were "very important" but that he had "never thought that this would happen" and that their relationship was essentially absent.

He previously acknowledged in a 2009 interview that he could have been a better parent, noting his obsession with work. He said he was now trying to make amends through his grandchildren, and that his own children seemed to have forgiven him.

Stewart also commented on his iconic role as Captain Jean-Luc Picard, saying it was more the father he wished he had been than the father he actually was. In a July interview with TV Insider, he noted that acting roles become scarcer with age, but he continued to receive interesting offers and did not plan to retire, stating, "I’ll always and forever be an actor."

Representatives for his children were not immediately available for comment. Stewart’s death was attributed to complications from Alzheimer’s disease and Lewy Body Dementia.