Listen to this article
Estimated 4 minutes
The audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology. Mispronunciations can occur. We are working with our partners to continually review and improve the results.
Eric Dane, the celebrated actor best known for his roles on Grey’s Anatomy and Euphoria and who later in life became advocate for ALS awareness, died Thursday. He was 53.
His representatives said Dane died from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a neurodegenerative disorder known also as Lou Gehrig’s disease, less than a year after he announced his diagnosis.
“He spent his final days surrounded by dear friends, his devoted wife, and his two beautiful daughters, Billie and Georgia, who were the center of his world,” said a statement that requested privacy for his family.
“Throughout 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’s received.”
Big break was ‘McSteamy’
Dane was born on Nov. 9, 1972, and raised in California. His father, a avy man, died of a gunshot wound when he was seven. After high school, he moved to Los Angeles to purse acting, landing guest roles on shows like Saved by the Bell, Married…With Children, Charmed and X-Men: The Last Stand, and a part for one season of the short-lived medical drama Gideon’s Crossing.
His big break arrived in the mid-2000s, when he was cast as Dr. Mark Sloan, a.k.a. McSteamy, on the ABC medical drama Grey’s Anatomy, a role he would play from 2006 until 2012 and reprise in 2021. In 2019, he did a complete 180 and became Cal Jacobs, a troubled married man, in HBO’s provocative drama Euphoria a role he continued in up until his death.
Dane also starred as Tom Chandler, the captain of a U.S. navy destroyer at sea after a global catastrophe wiped out most of the world’s population, in the TNT drama The Last Ship. In 2017, production was halted as Dane battled depression.
ALS diagnosis and advocacy
In April 2025, Dane announced he had been diagnosed with ALS, a progressive disease that attacks nerve cells controlling muscles throughout the body.
ALS gradually destroys the nerve cells and connections needed to walk, talk, speak and breathe. Most patients die within three to five years of a diagnosis.
Dane became an advocate for ALS awareness. In September 2025, the ALS Network named Dane the recipient of their advocate of the year award, recognizing his commitment to raising awareness and support for people living with ALS.
A memoir by Dane is scheduled to be published in 2026. Book of Days: A Memoir in Moments will be released by Maria Shriver’s The Open Field, a Penguin Random House imprint. According to Open Field, Dane will look back upon key moments in his life, from his first day at work on Grey’s Anatomy to the births of his two daughters and learning that he has ALS.
“I want to capture the moments that shaped me — the beautiful days, the hard ones, the ones I never took for granted — so that if nothing else, people who read it will remember what it means to live with heart,” Dane said in a statement around the book’s announcement.
“If sharing this helps someone find meaning in their own days, then my story is worth telling.”
Dane is survived by his wife, actor Rebecca Gayheart, and their two teen daughters, Billie Beatrice and Georgia Geraldine.
Gayheart and Dane wed in 2004 and separated in September 2017. Gayheart filed for divorce in 2018, but later filed to dismiss the petition.
In a December essay for New York magazine’s The Cut reflecting on Dane’s diagnosis, Gayheart called their dynamic “a very complicated relationship, one that’s confusing for people.” She said they never got a divorce, but dated other people and lived separately.
