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(Transcrito por TurboScribe.ai. Atualize para Ilimitado para remover esta mensagem.) Imagine if we had the opportunity to hear from a cultural icon after they've

passed away. A chance for them to shape their own legacy to be heard one last

time in their own words. Eric Dane's charm and magnetic presence quickly

solidified his stature as a TV star. He's most recognized for his role as Dr. Mark

Sloan on Grey's Anatomy, the longest-running medical drama in TV

history. Millions were captivated when his character stepped out of a steam

shower and he became McSteamy. Oh, this is awkward. And then there was his

painfully raw, brutal, and honest portrayal of Cal Jacobs on Euphoria.

Throughout his career, Eric played the heartthrob, the athlete, the hero, and the

villain, always with the same seemingly effortless charm, authenticity, and depth.

His role as father to his two daughters, Billie and Georgia, was the one that

mattered the most to him, though. He was resilient in his battle against ALS, an

incurable disease that paralyzed much of his body, but never his spirit. With his

passing, the world has lost the beloved leading man in the prime of his life.

Before he died, Eric Dane sat down for a deeply meaningful conversation, at the

end of which he was given the opportunity to speak directly to the

world and deliver his final message, knowing that what you're about to see

would not air until after he passed away, even if that meant locking away the

footage for months or even years. These are Eric Dane's famous last words.

Thank you. Well, you had to get me out of here some way. Somehow, right? And I think

a fireman's carry would have been asking a lot. Exactly. I'm just gonna lock it.

Great. Lock. Okay, you're stuck here with me now. What is it? Are you stuck in here

with me, or am I stuck in here with you, right? Exactly. You still have a sense of

humor about everything? I very much so. Did you have moments when you didn't, or

it came back, or? No, I'm always out of sense of humor about this. It's really kind of

interesting what's happening to my body. The mechanics of this disease is pretty

interesting to me. So when you zoom in and look at how it affects the individual

moments is when it can actually bring you down a little bit. You know, I'm a

complainer. I've always historically been, like, the guy that would bitch and moan

on his way to doing anything. But my spirit has been surprisingly pretty

buoyant throughout this journey. Why do you think it is? I have no idea. There's

no reason for me to be, you know, happy in any individual moment, but I am. And is

that something you think someone who isn't sick can experience? I think they

can understand the concept. I don't know if they'll actually experience it like

somebody who's terminally ill. Right. And what what it means to be alive has

changed for you. Every day. The progression of this thing is really just remarkable.

You know, I'm sure I sound pretty good to you, but to me I feel like I'm, I sound

like a frog. I sit here in nothing but respect and awe of you and your

strength, so you sound good to me. Good. And so we're here in this special room, this

set, where we're totally private. And there's no camera people operating in

here. They're in another room, so they can't hear what we're talking about. Mm-hmm.

And the point of this, always, for everyone we we talk to here, is an

opportunity to define themselves when everybody's trying to define them, an

opportunity for them to be really known. And you and I talked about, we wanted this,

our intention to be a little bit more specific, in that we really want at the

end of this, that your children will really know you in a way maybe they

wouldn't have had the opportunity to get to know you. Mm-hmm. You know, when this,

when people are watching this, you'll have died. Is that a complicated thing to

consider? Because part of it is relief, and part of it is every, every minute, no

matter what you're feeling, you're gonna want to be present to. Yeah. It's a weird

concept to kind of grapple with. You and I are talking here right now, and we're

both very alive, and at the same time, when this exists, if it ever does, I won't

be here. What's that feel like? It's kind of cool, I think. How so? Well, it's just

the idea of living on past the moment when you, when you peace out. It's pretty,

it's pretty interesting to me. Speaking from the dead. Speaking from the dead, yeah.

That's, that's what you're doing right now. Yeah. I'm gonna read your bio. Okay.

Eric William Dane, you were born November 9th, 1972, in San Francisco,

California. Your mother, Leah Cohen, was a homemaker. Your father, William Dane Melvin,

was a Navy airman who became an architect and an interior designer. He died when you were seven.

You have a younger brother, Sean. You were married to Rebecca Gayheart, a model and actress for more

than 20 years. You're still married to her today. Yeah, that's true. You share two daughters,

Georgia and Billy. Billy is named after your father. Mm-hmm. What was the thinking behind

that? My firstborn was always gonna be Billy, whether it was a boy or a girl. And she's got

kind of a cool name, Billy Dane. Mm-hmm. Sounds like a gunfighter. Yeah, exactly. Is

Georgia named after anyone? I think Rebecca just loved that name. You have been in an interesting

and impressive collection of shows, Saved by the Bell, The Wonder Years, Roseanne, Married

with Children, Silk Stalkings, and Charmed, amongst many others. In 2006, your one-time

guest role as Dr. Mark Sloan on Grey's Anatomy ignited a fan hysteria so intense, the show was

rewritten to make you into a leading man. After that, you starred as Captain Tom Chandler on The

Last Ship, followed by your critically acclaimed performance as Cal Jacobs on HBO's Euphoria. Since

you were diagnosed with ALS, you have been a tireless champion for expanding access to ALS

treatment, raising money, and bringing hope, dignity, and grace to the thousands impacted

by the disease. And when this is broadcast, all of that work will be finished and your body will be

at rest. How does it feel to hear your bio like that? Well, it feels like an interesting story

in there somewhere. I'm proud of some of it. You know, I'm dead. I'm proud of all of it. You know,

all of it got me to where I am today. Some of it I thought was always hard to hear, you know,

because that was such a wasted life. It was so talented. But there was a ton of experience in

there. Life experience, personal, professional. I think what I really tried to be good and approach

the craft with a certain amount of effort and focus that I was capable of doing some pretty

good work. Yeah, certainly your work on Euphoria, that to me is masterwork. Thank you. I

put a lot of effort into that. What's a personal connection to that character that you found?

There's something so vulnerable. There's something so exposed there. Well, Cal and I are very similar

in that we know what it's like to lead a double life. I've had experience with that with my battle

with drugs and alcohol. I know what it's like to not have my insides match my outside. And do you

think that's what your dad struggled with? I think my father struggled with life. And he never felt

he was enough. So when you were seven, your father died by suicide or an accident. I guess there was

some conversation about, I'm not sure which one you think it was. I don't think somebody who's that

intoxicated would play with a gun in a bathroom by themselves for fun. So I think my father in that

moment meant to do it. You know, I just, I can think about how lonely my father must have been and how scared he

must have been. It's heartbreaking. Does it make you emotional even now as you think about his loneliness?

Yes. And do you, do you connect it? Can you connect with that loneliness? Can you empathize? Do you feel, have you had

that level of loneliness as well? 100%. I could feel lonely in a crowded room. And has that always been your experience

of what it meant to be Eric? Was that Eric was, was lonely? Yeah, I've always felt detached from my peers. And I've

historically had a very difficult time connecting with people. And you know, four months after my father died, my

grandmother died, who I lived with. And you were very close to her? Very close. That was almost as impactful, maybe more so

than my dad. She really took care of me. What was she like? She was great, man. She was like, she was so much fun. I

remember putting on this record, she put on the same record every day. Which one? It was Engelbert Humperdinck. And it was

Cuando. Tell me cuando, cuando, cuando. And she would play it all day. And we'd dance around. She was just wonderful. Wow. And

she would take the San Francisco Chronicle and cut out the Dennis the Menace cartoon every day and put it on the fridge. Because she

was convinced that I was him. So there was something there always, whether it was mischief or, or charm or whatever you want to

call it. I think there was something there. A rascal. A rascal. Yeah, maintain that. Always your whole life? Yes. And she was your dad's

mom or your mom's mom? My mom's mom. And your mom was less involved or less maternal? My mom was young. I think she did the best she

could with the tools she had available to her. I know that you told the story before about when your mother told you that he had committed

suicide. You were seven. Yeah. And she woke you up in the middle of the night. And before she would tell you, she told you over and over, I need

you to promise to be strong. I need you to promise to be strong as a seven year old. There's a real sort of block, I think, in the, in the

empathy department. And I think it's because she's got a black belt in denial. What is she denying? I think she's denying that it could have such a

profound impact on me. On you? Yeah. Also, I don't think she's fully accepting that I had this disease. You know, I think she's still hanging on to the

idea that there's going to be a miracle cured a year from now. And it's denial. It's not hope. She's not hopeful. Listen, I don't blame her. My

kid had ALS. I would, I would cling to that, too. Yeah. You cling with your mother? Oh, no. Well, now you open up Pandora's box, Brad. That's a whole

other show. My mother always felt like I was a little challenging. She referred to me as a challenging child. And whether it was because she saw part of my dad in me, or I was just

difficult. You were Dennis the Menace, you said? I was Dennis the Menace. Even today, when I bring things up, you know, she's like, well, you know, can't you just get

past this? And it happened so long ago, why is it still affecting you? I think trauma reaches somebody on a cellular level. It's really hard to get out of your

system. In fact, probably impossible. The only thing you can do is learn how to deal with it. I've been working through it for a long time. I ended up going to a treatment center for trauma and

depression. Mostly related to your dad? Oh, solely related to my dad. Because that's where the trauma came from. Do you have like a memory of the of the moment of being hit with that

information? And the trauma setting in or something shutting off at that moment? Shutting off. Don't feel. Be strong to me, man. Don't feel, don't cry. I wanted to explode.

But I had to keep it in. In a way, I suppose your, your father, he couldn't do that for himself. He clearly. No. No. I was not on the table. Did you did you feel moments in life where you were missing your dad wasn't there for him? You play you're you're a big athlete, you were playing water polo, you were achieving a lot out in the world. Were there moments when you said, man, I only dad could be here for me?

Many. You ever talked to him? I've written letters to him. Not so much lately. I think I've found real peace around it. It's still makes me feel but I think I've really found some peace around it. Has he ever talked to you? You ever hear his voice? No.

Um, I've got a very controversial relationship with the universe right now. I can't see why. So when you say that, though, like, at this point, again, as people are watching this, you are at peace. Your body is at peace. So where are you? What is the what is your belief about this?

Well, my honest answer? Yeah. I think when the lights go out, it's over. I don't I don't believe that there's another place for our souls to go. I think people believe that stuff because it provides them with a lot of comfort.

Really come to grips with it. And I think once the lights go out, how would the old end with the new? Have you always believed that? I think so. Yeah. I do believe that when we go to sleep or however it is we we go, once we're gone, we're gone. And we live on in the memories of the people that will miss us.

I imagine there's a lot of people missing you a lot right now. So you're you're definitely living on. Yeah. If I were to ask Georgia and Billy, who was their dad? What do you think they'd say?

I think they would they would leave with. I'm a reactive person. My dad was a reactive person. What would they mean by that? Not necessarily a negative connotation, but some of their core memories involved me reacting to something like you.

You know, traffic is always a good, good impetus for that. Yeah. And I think they would they would say that I was pretty tough. Tough as in strong as in resilient. Resilient. Yeah.

I would say I was loving. And I was I was really endearing and compassionate and empathetic and trustworthy. A good dad. I'm a good dad. Yeah. They know that they they they would think that too. Mm hmm. Yeah.

He did some really great traveling, saw some wonderful places. Any particular moment that comes to your mind, highlight that comes in your mind of something you guys did together?

I went to Europe one year. And there was a time where I was ripping through the French countryside with the kids and this crazy little car we rented. And I was flying through the French countryside. And I would say everything with a French accent.

And for some reason, for that 15 minutes, my French accent was spot on. And I have no idea where it came from. Everybody just in stitches is laughing. Yeah. Yeah. That's the best thing. It's my favorite thing to do. Get them all laughing. Laugh myself too.

How would you describe your style as being a dad? Well, I think I think showing up is the number one. Number one quality. I haven't been perfect with that. But I've always been there when it mattered.

Do you when you say imperfect, do you have regrets about time you spent away?

Yeah, well, their mother and I are no longer together. We're still best friends, but we're not together. So by by, you know, just by virtue of the distance and us living under separate and separate home, you know, there's a lot of a lot of time lost there.

But, you know, I made sure that I can be there as much as possible and certainly when it counts.

What would you consider when it counts?

I've shown up to all of Billy's ballet recitals. I've been to many nutcrackers. And I'll tell you, there's a couple of pieces in there that are beautiful. But she doesn't think drones on.

I saw once, yeah, three hours, but I'm in all of them. I go to Georgia's Beach volleyball games. I'm present in their lives, whether I'm in front of them or two thousand miles away.

So with Rebecca, who you met and fell in love with quickly. And how would you describe the essence of that relationship and that love affair?

Well, we still love each other deeply. I just think we don't want to live with each other. Well, there's a lot of love there. I'll never. I will never. By the time anybody sees this, I've fallen in love with another woman as deeply as I fell in love with her.

She's the mother of my children. And the whole way that thing came about, it was so organic and fortuitous. I met Rebecca and I turned to her friend and I said, I'm going to marry that girl.

How did you know?

I have no idea. I have no idea how serious I was in that moment. But I said that. And her friend said, no way. She's never breaking up with her fiance. They're getting married. They've been together since they were 15. You know, four years later, I married her. I knew that I wanted to spend the rest of my life where it's supposed to happen.

Does she know you better than anybody? Do you think she knows you the most?

A hundred percent.

What would she say if I asked her who was Eric?

Oh, wow. Well, she would say that I was probably a person who was constantly vulnerable and terrified of being vulnerable. I think she would say that I was funny. I think she would say that I was charming and didn't know it.

You don't know you're charming or that that quality that you have, that that that's star charming quality. That's just...

I would argue I didn't have it. I don't know if you can have it and know that you have it.

Makes sense. Then it's then it's inauthentic, right?

I think it'd be inauthentic, yeah.

So what happened between the two of you? Why did the marriage not work out?

I think Rebecca was more willing to show up and do her part than I was.

How come? How come you weren't?

I don't have that gene that just makes you want to keep going regardless of what's happening. I'm like, if there's a hole in the boat, don't try to patch the hole. Scuttle the damn thing and go find a new one.

And that's how that's how you you approached big problems in the past in your life in general.

Yeah, I have.

But you can't do that now.

No.

Does that change your perspective on that strategy?

Yes. I've always been envious of people who fight and persevere.

Rebecca's a fighter and she perseveres.

But you clearly have a ton of perseverance. Maybe it was...

I don't know. Maybe it's the resiliency of the same thing.

I don't know. What do you think? How do you see the difference between those two things?

I think one is a coping mechanism or an active defense and the other is more proactive. I think perseverance is something that you do to something.

Right. But when you describe really living every moment up until the end and having to be really present, that feels like perseverance, not resilience.

Resilience feels like survival.

Yeah, you're right. Resiliency is survival.

And do you feel like most of your life you've been surviving?

Well, now that you mention it, Brad.

Yeah, I haven't displayed some perseverance in there.

I think so. It looks that way from from here.

Certainly. And not just with the ALS.

That just goes to show that I have a warped sense of who I am.

So, two questions. What's the warped sense and what's the true sense, do you think? What's the warped sense of who you are to you?

The warped sense?

Who you were.

OK. OK. The warped sense is as I am, I am not enough.

And I'm not deserving of having a great life.

I'm a little different than everybody.

You know, my life experience was very unique at that point.

And it made me feel like as I was, I was not enough.

Then the reality of that...