Eric Dane to Guest Star on NBC Series in Role Inspired by His ALS Diagnosis

Eric Dane will guest star in a special role on NBC’s Brilliant Minds inspired by his own journey with ALS.

The Euphoria actor will appear on Episode 9 of Season 2, set to air on Nov. 24, playing Matthew, a heroic firefighter who struggles to share his ALS diagnosis with his family, according to a press release. Dane’s character will turn to Zachary Quinto’s Dr. Oliver Wolf for help.

Dane announced in April that he had been diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a nervous system disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord, as per the Mayo Clinic. ALS causes progressive loss of muscle control and currently has no cure.

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“At the end of the day, just, all I want to do is spend time with my family and work a little bit if I can,” Dane told Diane Sawyer on Good Morning America in June. “I don’t think this is the end of my story. I just don’t feel like, in my heart, I don’t feel like this is the end of me.”

The Grey’s Anatomy alum has been open about his health journey, revealing in September that he had missed a scheduled appearance at the Emmy Awards after having to be hospitalized for a fall at home.

“ALS is a nasty disease. … So I was in the hospital during the Emmys getting stitches put in my head,” Dane told The Washington Post. While he was scheduled to mark the Grey’s Anatomy 20th anniversary alongside former co-star Jesse Williams, a fall in the kitchen meant that Dane had to skip the tribute.

“I missed an opportunity I was really looking forward to. It would have been great to see Jesse and get reunited with some of my peers, and to be able to present in front of my colleagues I thought would have been a special moment,” the actor said at the time. “So I was a really upset about it, but you know, there was nothing I could do about it.”

When it comes to sharing his ALS diagnosis publicly, Dane admitted it “wasn’t something I ever really wanted to do,” telling the outlet, “It was something I felt like I had to do. It was getting increasingly difficult to hide what was going on. And instead of letting people speculate what was happening, I just said it.”

Despite his reticence, Dane admitted, “And I’ve never experienced a bigger outpouring of love and support than I have after I announced that.”

Brilliant Minds airs Mondays at 10 p.m. ET on NBC.