“The Notebook” star Gena Rowlands has died at the age of 94 after battling Alzheimer’s disease.
According to TMZ, the retired actress passed away Wednesday afternoon at her home in Indian Wells, Calif., where she was surrounded by loved ones.
Her husband, Robert Forrest, and her daughter Alexandra “Xan” Cassavetes, 58, were present, per the outlet.
TMZ reported that Rowlands’ son, Nick Cassavetes — who directed the 2004 movie — had paid her frequent visits this week.
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It’s unclear whether Rowlands’ other daughter, Zoe Cassavetes, 54, was there when she died.
Though her exact cause of death has not yet been shared, Nick, 65, revealed his mother’s Alzheimer’s diagnosis in June while celebrating the 20th anniversary of “The Notebook,” in which her character, Allie, develops the progressive disease that destroys memory and other important mental functions.
“I got my mom to play older Allie, and we spent a lot of time talking about Alzheimer’s and wanting to be authentic with it, and now, for the last five years, she’s had Alzheimer’s,” shared Nick, whose maternal grandmother, actress Lady Rowlands, also suffered from the disease.
“She’s in full dementia, and it’s so crazy — we lived it, she acted it and now it’s on us,” he added.
When the film came out, Rowlands explained how her mom’s struggle with Alzheimer’s influenced her decision to play Allie.
“I went through that with my mother, and if Nick hadn’t directed the film, I don’t think I would have gone for it — it’s just too hard,” she admitted to O Magazine at the time. “It was a tough but wonderful movie.”
Rowlands is best known for her acclaimed collaborations with her late husband, John Cassavetes, including the movies “A Woman Under the Influence” (1974) and “Gloria” (1980). She received Oscar nominations for both.
Her last feature film was the 2014 comedy “Six Dance Lessons in Six Weeks,” co-starring Cheyenne Jackson.
She retired from Hollywood the following year.
