In his posthumous memoir, actor Eric Dane describes years of severe addiction, during which he used a wide range of drugs and entered rehab five times while filming “Grey's Anatomy“. The book “My Days: A Memoir in Moments“ will be released on November 3, 2026, a few months after the actor's death at the age of 53.
In an excerpt published by People, Dane writes: “I don't think there's a drug I haven't tried“. He then lists alcohol, marijuana, LSD, heroin, cocaine, hallucinogenic mushrooms, mescaline, crystal methamphetamine, crack cocaine, and various painkillers. Among them, he mentions Vicodin, Percocet, and OxyContin, as well as sedatives, muscle relaxants, and stimulants.
“I call this my dark period“, wrote the actor, who died of ASL. He said he auditioned and got roles back then, but his main energy was focused on drugs.
The Addiction and Success of “Grey's Anatomy“
Eric Dane played plastic surgeon Dr. Mark Sloan, also known as McSteamy, on the series from 2006 to 2012. In his memoir, he recounts that around 2008 he resumed using painkillers after a herniated disc in his neck suffered during a workout.
The actor describes how he lost nearly 170 pounds, his face had sunken, and his appearance began to betray his addiction. “They don't judge me. "They look concerned and sad," he wrote of his colleagues' reactions.
According to his story, show creator Shonda Rhimes repeatedly separated him from the others and told him that she would take care of him if he needed a break. After several stints in rehab, Eric Dane managed to stay sober on set, but he admits that he felt mentally on edge.
“I love Mark Sloan, but I have to leave him“, Eric Dane writes.
In 2012, at the end of the eighth season, Shonda Rhimes told him that she would not return for the next one. Dane also connects the decision with his own feeling that he had already exhausted the role. His character was seriously injured in a plane crash at the end of the season and died at the beginning of the ninth.
Depression, ALS and the last years
In 2017, while filming “The Last Ship“, Eric Dane entered treatment for depression, which interrupted production for six weeks. A year later, his marriage to Rebecca Gayheart broke up after 14 years. The couple have two daughters - Billie and Georgia, but maintain a close relationship.
In the book, the actor defines Gayheart as his best friend and says that she was there for him after his diagnosis with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Dane also describes an incident from 2024 when he nearly drowned while on vacation in Antigua, and was rescued by his daughter Georgia and her friend.
Eric Dane died in February 2026 after a battle with ALS. His memoir will be published posthumously and will collect stories about addiction, fame, family and life after his diagnosis.