{"id":307858,"date":"2026-02-20T10:40:11","date_gmt":"2026-02-20T10:40:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/307858\/"},"modified":"2026-02-20T10:40:11","modified_gmt":"2026-02-20T10:40:11","slug":"greys-anatomy-actor-eric-dane-dies-aged-53-after-als-battle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/307858\/","title":{"rendered":"Grey\u2019s Anatomy actor Eric Dane dies aged 53 after ALS battle"},"content":{"rendered":"

The US actor died less than a year after publicly revealing he had been diagnosed with the disease\n<\/p>\n

The US actor died less than a year after publicly revealing he had been diagnosed with the progressive neurodegenerative disease.<\/p>\n

His passing was confirmed by his representatives in a statement to the Associated Press, who said he had been surrounded by friends and family.<\/p>\n

The statement said: \u201cHe spent his final days surrounded by dear friends, his devoted wife, and his two beautiful daughters, Billie and Georgia, who were the centre of his world.<\/p>\n

\u201cThroughout his journey with ALS, Eric became a passionate advocate for awareness and research, determined to make a difference for others facing the same fight. He will be deeply missed, and lovingly remembered always. Eric adored his fans and is forever grateful for the outpouring of love and support he\u2019s received.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Eric<\/p>\n

Eric Dane as Mark Sloan in Grey’s Anatomy in 2010. (Photo by Bob D’Amico\/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Dane\u2019s career took off when he joined long-running medical drama Grey\u2019s Anatomy as fan-favourite Dr Mark \u201cMcSteamy\u201d Sloan.<\/p>\n

He played the suave surgeon from 2006 until 2012, returning to the show for a guest appearance in 2021.<\/p>\n

Dane later reached a new generation of viewers when he was cast as Cal Jacobs, the conflicted antagonist of the HBO hit Euphoria.<\/p>\n

Other screen credits include roles in Charmed, Burlesque, Marley and Me and Valentine\u2019s Day.<\/p>\n

\"Ellen<\/p>\n

Ellen Pompeo as Meredith Grey and Eric Dane as Mark Sloan in a 2006 episode of Grey’s Anatomy (Photo by Scott Garfield\/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Between 2014 and 2018 he played Tom Chandler in post-apocalyptic action series The Last Ship.<\/p>\n

Dane married actress Rebecca Gayheart in 2004 and the pair share two children.<\/p>\n

Gayheart filed for divorce in 2018 but later filed to have the petition dismissed.<\/p>\n

In December, she wrote for US magazine The Cut that while the two lived separately and dated other people, they shared \u201ca very complicated relationship, one that\u2019s confusing for people. Our love may not be romantic, but it\u2019s a familial love\u201d.<\/p>\n

\"Eric<\/p>\n

Eric Dane and Rebecca Gayheart arrive at the 59th Primetime Emmy Awards in 2007 (Kevork Djansezian\/ AP)<\/p>\n

In 2025, Dane went public with the news he had been diagnosed with ALS, later using his platform to advocate for greater awareness of the disease.<\/p>\n

ALS is the most common form of motor neurone disease, a terminal condition that progressively robs people of muscle control.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy left side is functioning; my right side has completely stopped working,\u201d he told American journalist Diane Sawyer in June 2025, but added he was \u201cvery hopeful\u201d for the future.<\/p>\n

Most people live three to five years after diagnosis.<\/p>\n

Dane later drew on his own experience for a guest role on the TV series Brilliant Minds in November 2025, portraying a firefighter diagnosed with ALS who struggles to share the news with his family<\/p>\n

Tributes <\/p>\n

Kevin McKidd, who portrays trauma surgeon Owen Hunt on Grey\u2019s Anatomy, posted a picture of Dane to his Instagram stories, writing \u201cRest in Peace, Buddy\u201d.<\/p>\n

Kim Raver, who stars as McKidd\u2019s on-screen wife Teddy Altman, called Dane a \u201clight\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019d see it effortlessly shine from him on the set of Grey\u2019s as well as when he was with Rebecca and the girls,\u201d she captioned an Instagram photo of the pair.<\/p>\n

\u201cDuring filming he\u2019d get this twinkle in his eye and with a mischievous look, he would deliver with perfect comedic timing, a line of dialogue that would floor you! You will be missed.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Similar sentiments were echoed by Sarah Drew, who played April Kepner, and James Pickens Jr, who portrays Richard Webber.<\/p>\n

In a statement to Variety, Euphoria creator Sam Levinson said: \u201d I\u2019m heartbroken by the loss of our dear friend Eric. Working with him was an honour. Being his friend was a gift.<\/p>\n

\u201cEric\u2019s family is in our prayers. May his memory be for a blessing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Alyssa Milano, who acted alongside Dane during his recurring role in the fantasy TV series Charmed, told her Instagram followers she could not stop thinking about the \u201cspark in Eric\u2019s eye right before he\u2019d say something that would either make you spit out your drink or rethink your entire perspective\u201d.<\/p>\n

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She wrote: \u201cHe had a razor-sharp sense of humor. He loved the absurdity of things. He loved catching people off guard.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd when it came to his daughters and Rebecca, everything in him softened. He carried them with him even in rooms where they weren\u2019t present. You could see it in the way his voice changed when he said their names. A breathtakingly beautiful family.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dane portrayed Jason Dean \u2013 a love interest of Milano\u2019s character \u2013 for nine episodes in the show\u2019s fifth and sixth seasons.<\/p>\n

Ashton Kutcher, John Stamos, Nina Dobrev, Robert Patrick and Maria Shriver were among the celebrity friends who also paid tribute to Dane.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Franklin strip fanatics fantasy football league will miss Mr. Eric Dane,\u201d Kutcher wrote in a post on X.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe know you\u2019ll be watching from the booth. Miss you, buddy. Let\u2019s keep fighting the fight to solve ALS.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Dobrev, who appeared alongside Dane in 2022\u2019s Redeeming Love, remembered the actor as \u201cwarm, generous, prepared, and so passionate about what he did\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe led with kindness and made everyone on our set feel seen. ALS is a cruel and unforgiving disease,\u201d she wrote on her Instagram stories.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The US actor died less than a year after publicly revealing he had been diagnosed with the disease…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":307859,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[42,898,43,40,38,41,39],"class_list":{"0":"post-307858","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-headlines","8":"tag-headlines","9":"tag-latest-news-ticker","10":"tag-news","11":"tag-top-news","12":"tag-top-stories","13":"tag-topnews","14":"tag-topstories"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/307858","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=307858"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/307858\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/307859"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=307858"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=307858"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=307858"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}