Patrick Stewart's Regrets Over Estrangement From Children Revealed
The actor, who died at 86, spoke candidly about his strained relationships with his adult children and his prioritization of his acting career.
Sir Patrick Stewart, who passed away at the age of 86 following a battle with Alzheimer's disease and Lewy body dementia, had spoken in the years prior to his death about his regrets concerning his estranged adult children.
In a 2023 interview with the Irish Independent, Stewart revealed he experienced "significant grief" over his lack of relationship with his son Daniel, 59, and daughter Sophie, 54. He admitted he never anticipated such a situation, stating, "I always put my acting work first, before my family." The actor expressed that "not a day goes by" that he didn't regret the estrangement, feeling pained by the memory of his children and their current selves, and a sense of responsibility for their lives.
Stewart acknowledged he "could've done better as a parent" when his children were young, attributing his focus to being "obsessed with my work." He indicated he was attempting to correct this with his grandchildren, and that his own children "seem to have forgiven" him.
These sentiments were also detailed in his 2023 book, "Making It So," where he described his relationships with Daniel and Sophie as "a work in progress." He wrote that the hurt from his split with their mother, Sheila Falconer, had never fully disappeared, though he maintained a positive relationship with his four grandchildren.
Stewart was married three times: first to Sheila Falconer from 1966 to 1990, then to producer Wendy Neuss from 2000 to 2003, and finally to singer Sunny Ozell, whom he married in September 2013.
He met Ozell in 2008 when she was working as a waitress in a Brooklyn restaurant. Stewart recounted giving her his number and arranging tickets to his performance of "Macbeth." Their relationship developed from there, leading to their wedding in Lake Tahoe, officiated by his friend Ian McKellen. At the time of their marriage, Stewart was 73 and Ozell was 35. Ozell commented in 2015 that their age difference was rarely an issue, noting, "He is so youthful and I guess I'm kind of an old worry wart so we bridge the gap."
Stewart's death was confirmed via a statement on his Instagram page. The statement mentioned he passed away at his Los Angeles home in the "loving care of his beloved wife Sunny," after a "brief and poignant journey with Alzheimer's Disease and Lewy Body Dementia."