Grey’s Anatomy star Eric Dane revealed in April 2025 that he was battling ALS. Also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis is a fatal neurodegenerative disease that has no cure. Eric Dane’s symptoms progressed quickly. He lost his ability to walk and was losing his ability to talk. But fans weren’t expecting him to pass so suddenly. Less than a year after he went public with the diagnosis, he was gone.
He gave one final interview, but some fans found it upsetting, saying it should have been kept private. Keep reading for all the details.
Netflix Releases Final Interview With Eric Dane
Eric Dane had minor guest roles in Roseanne, Saved By The Bell, and Charmed before landing the role that would make him a household name. He played Dr. Mark Sloan, AKA “McSteamy” on Grey’s Anatomy for seven seasons until the character was killed off. He starred in The Last Ship after leaving the ABC drama series.
Eric Dane continued working even after his diagnosis, filming a role for Euphoria. Hours after the news of his death broke, Netflix shared a final interview with the actor for its Famous Last Words series.
Eric Dane dedicated his final words to his two children. He shares two daughters, Billie, 15, and Georgia, 14, with Rebecca Gayheart. The actress filed for divorce in 2018 but dismissed the filing after his diagnosis. The Grey’s Anatomy star shared four life lessons with his daughters.
“I hope you won’t just listen to me, I hope you’ll hear me. First, live now, right now in the present. It’s hard, but I learned to do that,” he said. His second piece of advice was for them to fall in love. ‘Fall in love with something. Find your passion, your joy,” he told them.
The Girl Dad’s third piece of advice was to choose your friends wisely. He told his daughters about how his true friends were there for him, no matter what. His final piece of advice was heart-wrenching.
“Fight with every ounce of your being and with dignity,” he told his daughters. “You can face the end of your days. You can face h**l with dignity. Fight, girls, and hold your heads high.”
Fans Feel Message to Daughters Should Be Private
“Billie and Georgia, you are my heart. You are my everything. Good night. I love you,” Eric Dane said at the end of the Netflix interview. The clip of his words to his daughters went viral. A lot of people took the words to heart, but others criticized the choice to air the footage on social media.
- “Feel like this should have been kept private for the daughters”
- “Too personal for social media”
- “this is so sweet but i feel like this should be private and special just for them”
- “IMO this was for his daughters not the world so why tf did they open this to the public”
- “Why is this being aired. It’s so personal”
But one comment suggested that Eric Dane wanted the public to hear his final words and the love for his family. Tell us in the comments if you think it was in poor taste for Netflix to air the actor’s final interview.
Jennifer Havener grew up in a small town in Upstate New York. She earned her B.A in Writing & Literature from Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado. She always knew watching reality TV shows and soap operas, particularly ‘Days of Our Lives’, would come in handy someday. When she’s not writing, she’s playing with her dogs, Lola and Ruger
