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Kelsey Grammer Pays Tribute to Patrick Stewart Ahead of Their Final On-Screen Reunion in ‘Avengers: Doomsday’

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The Marvel community is still mourning one of its most beloved figures. Sir Patrick Stewart, who brought Professor Charles Xavier to life across the ‘X-Men’ films, died on October 28 at the age of 86. His family urged support for Alzheimer’s research after his passing.

Tributes have come in from all corners of Hollywood. Hugh Jackman called Stewart one of the greats of stage and screen and a tremendous friend, while Marvel Studios’ Kevin Feige recalled the privilege of knowing and working with him. Stewart’s final turn as Professor X will come in ‘Avengers: Doomsday’, which opens in December.

Now Kelsey Grammer, who returns as Hank McCoy, aka Beast, in the film, has shared his own heartfelt memories. Speaking with CBS News about reuniting with Stewart for ‘Avengers: Doomsday’, Grammer described his longtime friend as a truly remarkable man. He singled out Stewart’s marvelous voice and said that, in that way, Stewart will always live on with them.

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It’s a moving tribute from someone who knew Stewart well. Grammer had previously described the 2 of them as old pals and good friends, which made their reunion in the Marvel film especially meaningful.

Their connection goes back long before ‘Avengers: Doomsday’. Grammer made a guest appearance in ‘Star Trek: The Next Generation’, the series in which Stewart played Captain Jean-Luc Picard. Stewart later guest-starred on ‘Frasier’ as Alistair Burke, a Seattle opera conductor who becomes a new friend to Frasier and his brother Niles.

That ‘Frasier’ appearance meant a lot to Stewart. SlashFilm notes that it was reportedly his personal favorite guest role, and it remains one of the show’s best-loved episodes. The pair also shared the screen as mutants, with Grammer debuting as Beast in ‘X-Men: The Last Stand’ alongside Stewart.

‘Avengers: Doomsday’ brings back several familiar faces from the original films. Along with Stewart’s Professor X and Grammer’s Beast, the returning mutants include Ian McKellen’s Magneto, Alan Cumming’s Nightcrawler, Rebecca Romijn’s Mystique, James Marsden’s Cyclops and Channing Tatum’s Gambit.

Grammer had been looking forward to the reunion for a long time. In earlier interviews, he recalled working with Stewart in the original ‘X-Men’ films and described how fun it was to interact with new co-stars on the ‘Doomsday’ set. He has also admitted that Marvel’s secrecy means he knows very little about the film’s final story.

Stewart’s passion for his work stayed strong until the end. When rumors spread earlier this year that ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ would be his final film, he dismissed them, saying he would always be an actor. In what turned out to be his final interview with TV Insider, he said he couldn’t imagine retiring.

That makes his upcoming appearance as Professor X all the more poignant. For many fans, seeing Stewart in the role one last time will feel like a farewell to an era of superhero cinema that he helped define.

Grammer’s words reflect what so many collaborators have said in recent days. Stewart was celebrated not just for his work on ‘Star Trek’ and ‘X-Men’, but also for his stage career and sharp sense of humor away from the camera. ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ arrives in theaters on December 18. When it does, audiences will get to see these 2 longtime friends share the screen one final time.

Which Patrick Stewart performance will you remember most?

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