Months before his passing, actor Eric Dane, known for his performances in Grey’s Anatomy and Euphoria, sat down for what would be his final public interview – a very personal message to his teenage daughters.
Dane, who passed away on February 19 at the age of 53 after a fight with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), recorded the interview in November 2025 for the Netflix documentary series Famous Last Words. The episode was aired only after his death.
Toward the end of the interview, Dane was left alone with the camera. Speaking directly to his daughters, Billie and Georgia, he reflected on his life, his illness and the lessons he hoped they would carry forward.
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“Billie and Georgia, these words are for you,” Dane said. “I tried. I stumbled sometimes, but I tried. Overall, we had a blast, didn’t we?”
Reflections shaped by illness
During the interview, Dane recalled family trips to Santa Monica, Hawaii and Mexico, describing long days by the ocean with his wife and daughters. Visibly emotional, he referred to them as his “water babies” and said those moments were among the happiest of his life.
He began with the first lesson he had learned from living with ALS, which was to stay in the present. Dane confessed that he had spent too many years dwelling on past mistakes and second-guessing himself, which he could have avoided sooner.
He urged his daughters to find love in whatever form brought them purpose, whether through relationships, passions or work and to choose their friends carefully. Dane credited his close friends for supporting him as his condition worsened, noting that he could no longer do everyday things like driving or going to the gym.
In his final piece of advice, Dane spoke about resilience.
“Fight with every ounce of your being and with dignity,” he said. “This disease is slowly taking my body, but it will never take my spirit.”
He ended the message by telling his daughters that strength was their shared “superpower.”
“You are my heart. You are my everything. Good night. I love you.”
A career and life remembered
Dane rose to global fame as Dr Mark “McSteamy” Sloan on Grey’s Anatomy, a role he played from 2006 to 2012 and briefly reprised in later seasons. In recent years, he earned acclaim for his portrayal of Cal Jacobs on HBO’s Euphoria.
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He publicly revealed his ALS diagnosis in 2025 and later became an advocate for awareness and research into neurodegenerative diseases.
In a statement confirming his death, his family said Dane spent his final days surrounded by loved ones and asked for privacy as they grieve. Dane is survived by his wife, actress Rebecca Gayheart, and daughters Billie and Georgia.
