Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, better known as ALS, doesn’t show up often. Doctors estimate it affects just 2 to 6 people per 100,000 worldwide. That rarity hasn’t spared the spotlight, however. When public figures receive the diagnosis, the disease suddenly feels personal. ALS remains rare. It remains fatal. But thanks to the very public courage of those who fought it, it’s no longer invisible. Here are 20 celebrities who died after battling ALS.
Stephen Hawking
Folks worldwide recognise the name Stephen Hawking. The renowned physicist was diagnosed with ALS at a young age of 21, but managed to beat the odds of the disease. Hawking lived for 55 years with the condition before passing away in 2018.
Eric Dane
Actor Eric Dane, best known as Dr Mark “McSteamy” from Shonda Rhimes’s long-running series Grey’s Anatomy, recently passed away from ALS on the 19th of February 2026. Dane was just 53 years old.
Sam Shepard
Sam Shepard was a playwright, actor, author, screenwriter, and director…not to mention great on all counts. Sadly, the multi-hyphenate talent passed away in 2017 after more than a year of privately battling ALS.
Stephen Hillenburg
Stephen Hillberg is the face behind the hit Nickelodeon show SpongeBob SquarePants. Hillberg died in 2018 at the age of 57 after nearly two years of battling ALS.
Bryan Randall
Photographer and former model Bryan Randall died in August 2023 after a three-year battle with the neurodegenerative disease. Randall had been in a relationship with Sandra Bullock for eight years before his untimely passing at the age of 57.
Jon Stone
Jon Arthur Stone was an original crew member on Sesame Street from its inception in 1969. The writer, director, and producer helped develop some of the show’s most beloved characters, including faves like Cookie Monster, Oscar the Grouch and Big Bird. Stone won 18 Emmy Awards for his work before ALS took his life in 1997 at the age of 66.
Catfish Hunter
Major League Baseball player James Augustus “Catfish” Hunter was diagnosed with ALS in his early 50s. The disease cut his life short in 1999, just a year after his official diagnosis.
David Niven
Academy Award winner David Niven also suffered from the motor neuron destroying disease before he died in 1983. The lauded British actor had to have his voice dubbed for his final onscreen appearance as Sir Charles Lytton in the 1983 film Curse of the Pink Panther due to the effects of ALS.
Dennis Day
Dennis Day was a popular actor, comedian, and singer of the 40s and 50s. The Irish American celebrity was one of the well-known celebrities who died from ALS in their later years of life.
Dwight Clark
San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Dwight Edward Clark suffered from ALS three decades after he retired from the NFL. Clark suspected that the disease could have been caused by head injuries sustained during his nine-years on the gridiron.
Joe Bonsall
Oak Ridge Boys tenor Joseph Sloan Bonsall Jr. died from complications of ALS on July 9, 2024, after a four-year battle with the disease. That said, Bonsall only stopped touring with the vocal quartet in January 2024, which really speaks volumes to his passion for the craft.
Kenneth Mitchell
Lou Gehrig’s disease took the life of a 49-year-old Canadian actor, Kenneth Mitchell, in February 2024. Mitchell had notable roles in series like Jericho and Star Trek: Discovery, but also appeared on the big screen in Captain Marvel.
Kim Shattuck
Kim Shattuck was a singer, songwriter, and guitarist for punk and indie rock bands the Muffs, Pandoras, The Coolies and Pixies before her two-year battle with ALS ended at age 56.
Lou Gehrig
Famous New York Yankees baseball player Lou Gehrig died at the age of 37 after a short battle with ALS. Gehrig was diagnosed with the progressive disease on his 36th birthday in 1939 and passed on two years later in 1941. His public battle with ALS brought widespread attention to the illness, and his name has been synonymous with the diagnosis for decades since.
Mike Porcaro
Michael Porcaro, who joined the rock band Toto in 1982, officially retired from touring back in 2007 after being diagnosed with Motor Neurone disease. The 59-year-old reportedly passed away peacefully in his sleep on March 15, 2015.
Peggy Rea
The beloved Peggy Rea was known for her roles as Rose Burton on The Waltons and Lulu Hogg on The Dukes of Hazzard. While she lived to the age of 89, Rea passed away in 2011 as a result of complications from ALS.
Polly Platt
Polly Platt (1939–2011) was a trailblazer in the film industry. She was the first woman accepted into the Art Directors Guild and is widely recognised for her groundbreaking work in production design and art direction. Platt lived until the age of 72 before she died from ALS in 2011.
Rebecca Luker
Rebecca Luker had a three-decade-long career on Broadway before passing away in 2020, at age 59. The three-time Tony Award nominee was diagnosed with the disease in late 2019 and passed away the following December.
Roberta Flack
Roberta Flack is a legend of the R&B world. Her career spanned six decades and culminated in two back-to-back Grammys for Record of the Year in 1973 and 1974. Flack passed away in 2025 at age 88 from a cardiac arrest brought on by her ALS.
Tomi Pierce
Producer and writer Tomi Pierce was taken too soon as a result of ALS. She passed away in 2010 at the age of 56 with games like The Last Express (1997) and documentaries like Chavez Ravine: A Los Angeles Story (2003) to her name.
