Patrick Stewart

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Patrick Stewart

British actor

Also known as: Sir Patrick Stewart

Written by Melissa Albert

Fact-checked by The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last Updated: Oct 30, 2024 • Article History

Quick Facts

In full:: Sir Patrick Stewart

Born:: July 13, 1940, Mirfield, West Yorkshire, England

Also Known As:: Patrick Stewart; Sir Patrick Stewart

Awards And Honors:: Grammy Award (1995); Grammy Award (1996): Best Spoken Word Album for Children

Married To:: Sunny Ozell (2013–present); Wendy Neuss (2000–2003); Sheila Falconer (1966–1990)

Movies/Tv Shows (Acted In):: "Star Trek: Picard" (2020); "American Dad!" (2005–2020); "Coda" (2019); "Charlie's Angels" (2019); "The Kid Who Would Be King" (2019); "Family Guy" (2005–2018); "The Wilde Wedding" (2017); "The Emoji Movie" (2017); "Dragonheart: Battle for the Heartfire" (2017); "Logan" (2017); "Blunt Talk" (2015–2016); "Spark: A Space Tail" (2016); "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt" (2016); "Christmas Eve" (2015); "Robot Chicken" (2012–2015); "Oscar's Hotel for Fantastical Creatures" (2015); "Ted 2" (2015); "Green Room" (2015); "X-Men: Days of Future Past" (2014); "Match" (2014); "Cosmos" (2014); "The Colbert Report" (2014); "Sinbad: The Fifth Voyage" (2014); "The Daily Show" (2014); "Hunting Elephants" (2013); "Legends of Oz: Dorothy's Return" (2013); "The Simpsons" (1995–2013); "Futurama" (2012); "The Hollow Crown" (2012); "Ted" (2012); "Ice Age: Continental Drift" (2012); "Gnomeo & Juliet" (2011); "Great Performances" (2010); "TMNT" (2007); "X-Men: The Last Stand" (2006); "Eleventh Hour" (2006); "Chicken Little" (2005); "Extras" (2005); "The Game of Their Lives" (2005); "High Spirits with Shirley Ghostman" (2005); "Steamboy" (2004); "Back to Gaya" (2004); "Frasier" (2003); "X2" (2003); "Star Trek: Nemesis" (2002); "Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius" (2001); "X-Men" (2000); "Moby Dick" (1998); "The Prince of Egypt" (1998); "Star Trek: Insurrection" (1998); "Wayfinders" (1998); "Safe House" (1998); "Dad Savage" (1998); "Masterminds" (1997); "Conspiracy Theory" (1997); "Star Trek: First Contact" (1996); "Let It Be Me" (1995); "Jeffrey" (1995); "500 Nations" (1995); "The Pagemaster" (1994); "Star Trek: Generations" (1994); "Star Trek: The Next Generation" (1987–1994); "Robin Hood: Men in Tights" (1993); "Gunmen" (1993); "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine" (1993); "L.A. Story" (1991); "Theatre Night" (1987); "Screenplay" (1986); "Lady Jane" (1986); "The Doctor and the Devils" (1985); "Code Name: Emerald" (1985); "Lifeforce" (1985); "Wild Geese II" (1985); "Dune" (1984); "Uindii" (1984); "Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind" (1984); "Maybury" (1981–1983); "Smiley's People" (1982); "The Plague Dogs" (1982); "Excalibur" (1981); "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy" (1979); "BBC2 Play of the Week" (1978); "Jackanory" (1977); "Drama" (1977); "I, Claudius" (1976); "North & South" (1975); "Hedda" (1975); "Hennessy" (1975); "Churchill's People" (1975); "Fall of Eagles" (1974); "2nd House" (1974); "Play for Today" (1973); "BBC Play of the Month" (1973); "Omnibus" (1970); "Coronation Street" (1967); "Theatre 625" (1966); "Story Parade" (1964)

Patrick Stewart (born July 13, 1940, Mirfield, West Yorkshire, England) is a British actor of stage, screen, and television who is perhaps best known for his work on the series Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987–94) and its related films.

His father served in the military, but Patrick, while his brothers completed military service of their own, began acting onstage at age 12. He performed in playhouses around England before making his London theatrical debut in 1966. The following year he joined the prestigious Royal Shakespeare Company, and he made his first Broadway appearance in 1971, as Snout in Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

Despite taking small roles in American and British films and on television beginning in 1973, Stewart remained primarily a stage actor for the first quarter century of his career. Then, in 1987, he gained international attention as Capt. Jean-Luc Picard in the science-fiction series Star Trek: The Next Generation (TNG). Following veteran Star Trek actor William Shatner into the captaincy of the starship Enterprise, arguably the most famous spaceship in popular culture, Stewart’s Picard quickly stepped out of the long shadow of Shatner’s Captain Kirk. Although it was a surprising choice for a “serious” actor, the role brought Stewart an unprecedented level of fame. His cultured voice and natural gravitas lent great credence to the role and made him the urbane and deeply moral centre of TNG. The show ran for seven seasons and spawned four feature films between 1994 and 2002. A follow-up TV series, Star Trek: Picard, debuted in 2020.

USA 2006 - 78th Annual Academy Awards. Closeup of giant Oscar statue at the entrance of the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles, California. Hompepage blog 2009, arts and entertainment, film movie hollywood

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During this time Stewart acted in other television projects; notable appearances included the made-for-TV movies The Canterville Ghost (1996), A Christmas Carol (1999), King of Texas (2002), and The Lion in Winter (2003). In 2006 his guest turn on the HBO comedy series Extras earned him an Emmy Award nomination.

In 2000 Stewart brought his powerful presence to the American blockbuster film X-Men, playing paraplegic genius Professor Charles Xavier. The professor—like Picard, a peace-loving and intelligent man—similarly helped to ground a fantastical franchise. Stewart reprised the role in several successful sequels (2003, 2006, 2014, and 2017). The series also featured Ian McKellen, and the two developed a much-publicized friendship; McKellen officiated Stewart’s 2013 wedding to singer-songwriter Sunny Ozell.

After starring as a choreographer who is interrogated by a graduate student and her husband in the film Match (2014), Stewart assumed the role of a dissipated newscaster in the television comedy series Blunt Talk (2015–16). He appeared in the ensemble holiday comedy Christmas Eve and oozed menace as the leader of a group of white supremacists in the thriller Green Room (both 2015). Stewart later assumed the role of legendary wizard Merlin in The Kid Who Would Be King (2019), a contemporary take on the Arthurian legend. Having used his perfect British diction to comedic effect in cartoon TV shows, he also lent his voice to the animated movies Gnomeo & Juliet (2011), Ice Age: Continental Drift (2012), Legends of Oz: Dorothy’s Return (2013), and The Emoji Movie (2017).

Despite these on-screen successes, Stewart continued to act on the stage, and he never stopped performing Shakespeare. In the 1990s he played Prospero in The Tempest and the title role in an innovative take on Othello. In 2008 Stewart’s masterful performance of the title role in Shakespeare’s Macbeth brought unexpected freshness to the play. The production, which started in London and later moved to Broadway, was set in a claustrophobic Stalinist U.S.S.R., which seemed well suited to the play’s atmosphere of paranoiac treachery. Stewart won raves—and a Tony Award nomination—for his rich realization of the central character. Later in 2008 he took on the role of Claudius in Hamlet, for which he received his third Laurence Olivier Award. The following year Stewart earned praise as Vladimir in Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot. His costar was McKellen, and the duo reprised their roles on Broadway for a double-bill production (2013–14) that also included Harold Pinter’s play No Man’s Land. In 2016 Stewart and McKellen starred in a London staging of the latter play.

Stewart became an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2001, and in 2009 he was awarded a knighthood.

Melissa AlbertThe Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica