Two months after sharing his ALS diagnosis with the world, Eric Dane is giving an emotional update on his health battle.
In a clip from an upcoming Good Morning America interview with Diane Sawyer set to air on Monday, June 16, Dane, 52, got choked up while speaking with the journalist.
“I wake up every day and I’m immediately reminded that this is happening,” he said in the preview, which was posted on GMA’s Facebook account on Thursday, June 12.
“It’s not a dream,” Sawyer, 79, said, to which Dane repeated, “It’s not a dream.”
Further on in the video, Dane said, “I don’t think this is the end of my story. I don’t feel like this is the end of me.”
While referring to his diagnosis with the progressive neurodegenerative disease, Sawyer asked, “Who was your first call?”
Though the video did not show Dane’s response, he appeared to hold back tears and lowered his head before giving an answer.
Dane first revealed his ALS diagnosis to the world in a statement on April 10.
“I have been diagnosed with ALS,” he told People. “I am grateful to have my loving family by my side as we navigate this next chapter.”
“I feel fortunate that I am able to continue working and am looking forward to returning to set of Euphoria next week,” the statement continued. “I kindly ask that you give my family and I privacy during this time.” (Dane has starred as Cal Jacobs on the HBO hit since it premiered in 2019.)
Eric Dane Michael Tullberg/Getty Images
Days after opening up about his diagnosis, Dane was spotted in public for the first time while out in Los Angeles with a pal. Last month, he was seen with estranged wife Rebecca Gayheart in West Hollywood after calling off their divorce.
Dane and Gayheart got married in 2004 and share two children, Billie, 15, and Georgia, 13. In 2018, she filed for divorce from the actor, citing irreconcilable differences as the reason for their split.
On March 6, Gayheart requested to dismiss her divorce from Dane. They both signed off on the docs.
The following month, she spoke out about where her relationship with Dane stood and how they were focusing on parenting their kids.
“We are best of friends. We are really close. We are great coparents,” she told E! News on April 9. “We really figured out the formula to staying a family and I think our kids are benefiting greatly from it and we are as well.”
“I think it’s important to not look at a relationship that ends as a failure. It’s just a season. It wasn’t a failure,” Gayheart continued. “It was a huge success. We were married for, I mean, we are still married, but together for 15 years and we had two beautiful kids so I think that’s a successful relationship, and that’s how we look at it.”
Ahead of the GMA interview airing on TV, Dane also sat down with Variety on Thursday, where he was asked how it felt to publicly share the news of his ALS diagnosis.
“With real respect, I really don’t want to talk about it. I made the announcement,” he replied, shifting the conversation to his upcoming Amazon Prime series, Countdown. “That’s what’s going on with me; it’s very personal to me. And I just want to keep talking about Countdown.”
When asked what kind of projects he would like to do in the future, Dane replied, “That’s a good question, because it dovetails into the question you asked me before. I am ready and willing to do just about anything, but I have limitations that I understand will preclude me from playing certain roles. I’m working on Euphoria. I finished Countdown. As far as that goes, I’m pretty capable.”
