In 2004, actors Eric Dane and Rebecca Gayheart got married and, like many couples, vowed to support each other through good times and bad, including during illness.
The sentiment felt especially relevant after the passing of Dane DeHaan, the actor known for his role in Grey’s Anatomy, who died Thursday at the age of 53 following a diagnosis of a serious, incurable disease late last year.
Even though she and her husband, Gayheart, had been living apart since 2017, she went back to support him, taking him to medical appointments and helping their two teenage daughters cope with the situation.
Even more touching, Gayheart’s new businessman boyfriend, Peter Morton, was happy to oblige.
Dane kept his diagnosis of ALS private until April of last year. Interestingly, Gayheart had previously dismissed their divorce case, which was originally filed in 2018, just one month before he revealed his illness.
Sources say the decision highlighted the strong connection between Dane and Gayheart, which they had worked hard to preserve.
‘Rebecca has been by Eric’s side through his entire health battle,’ one source told the Daily Mail.
She’s a genuinely kind person and has always been incredibly supportive, especially when he was going through a difficult time. She helped not only for the sake of their children, but also because she and Eric shared a deep and lasting connection, built on a lot of love.
The actor, best known as ‘McSteamy’ from the TV show Grey’s Anatomy, started to get sick about a year before he was diagnosed. He was young, attractive, and in good shape, so no one suspected he was seriously ill.
In fact, another source said, both Dane and Gayheart at first didn’t want to believe how serious his condition really was.
According to a source, they both downplayed their early symptoms, neither suspecting anything serious was wrong. In fact, the idea that he was facing a life-threatening illness never crossed their minds.
The news was devastating, and they were stunned for days. They kept it to themselves at first, desperately hoping the doctors or specialists had made a mistake.
Unfortunately, there’s currently no cure for ALS, and people with the condition will eventually lose their ability to move, leading to paralysis. It’s a very difficult disease.
After that, Gayheart made it a priority to go with Dane to nearly all of his appointments, which deeply affected her emotionally.
If a marriage endures even after a separation and both individuals have moved on with other relationships, what does that tell us about the nature of love when someone is facing a limited time left in their life?
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Rebecca was deeply affected by his quick decline, a second source revealed. She struggled to accept that the man she loved – a strong figure and the father of their two daughters – was facing an impossible situation.
Even though Rebecca and Eric had been living apart for years, she decided to stop their divorce proceedings when he was diagnosed with ALS. She couldn’t bring herself to end their marriage under those circumstances.
Despite the long-delayed divorce, she realized he still needed her during this terrible time.
Even though Gayheart, 54, had seemingly started a new relationship with 78-year-old Morton – who co-founded the Hard Rock Café and comes from the family behind Morton Steakhouse – he’s a very wealthy man, with an estimated net worth of $800 million.
From what I’m hearing, Jessica Gayheart and her partner, Trevor Morton, were seriously considering their future together – even talking about marriage! It sounds like they were hoping to get engaged as soon as Jessica’s divorce was official. It’s lovely to see them so committed!
Those conversations, it seems, were put on ice – though Morton has remained close at hand.
According to a source, Rebecca is thrilled with her relationship with Peter, and they’re deeply in love. While there were rumors of a possible wedding, it’s unclear if those plans are still in motion. The source also shared that Peter is captivated by Rebecca’s genuine and kind nature.
Like any mother, Gayheart has focused on taking care of her two children, especially as they watched their father become increasingly ill.
As a lifestyle expert, I often hear about different family dynamics, and in this case, it’s lovely to see a strong mother-daughter bond. I understand that Billie, who’s 15, and her sister Georgia, 14, have been living with their mom full-time for the past seven years, and it’s wonderful that they’ve had that consistent support system.
Shortly before he passed away, Dane was living in a house owned by Johnny Depp in Los Angeles. He was staying there without paying rent to help with his financial difficulties during his final months.
It’s understandable that treating a serious disease like ALS is expensive. As Dane’s condition worsened and he became confined to a wheelchair and then bedridden, he required constant, full-time care.
Even with seven seasons on Grey’s Anatomy and appearances in shows like HBO’s Euphoria, he wasn’t wealthy when he passed away. This was largely due to his battle with ALS, which prevented him from working during the final years of his life.
According to one source who spoke with the Daily Mail, he spent a lot of money on top-quality medical care, including expenses not covered by insurance, and needed to pay for around-the-clock assistance.
I wouldn’t say Eric was completely without money when he passed away, but he didn’t have much in his bank account.
Thankfully, Johnny Depp is there for him – the two have been friends for years, having connected through friends they both knew in Hollywood.
Morton also played a role, supporting Gayheart and Dane’s children.
‘Peter is generous. If Rebecca has ever needed anything, he has been there,’ the insider said.
Last June, Dane shared in an interview with Diane Sawyer on Good Morning America that he didn’t want to die.
He explained his anger stemmed from losing his father at a young age, and now he fears his own daughters may experience a similar loss – being separated from him while they are still young.
It was surely weighing on him that a life in the fast lane may be catching up to him.
In 2012, Dane was let go from Grey’s Anatomy while he was battling addiction to drugs and alcohol.
He’d struggled with this issue for a while. He’d been sober for three or four years when he started working on the show, but he later confessed to starting to drink again during the 2007 writers’ strike.
‘I am not good with a lot of time on my hands,’ he explained.
In the summer of 2011, Dane entered rehab to overcome an addiction to prescription painkillers. This was also when he began struggling with serious depression.
He remembered a frightening feeling of not wanting to face the day, describing it as waking up and thinking, “I just don’t want to get out of bed.”
Billie, his daughter, was just a toddler, only sixteen months old. Plus, his wife was expecting their second child, Georgia, who arrived in December.
Despite worrying about dying young, Dane thankfully had the chance to say goodbye to his family before he passed away, and he found peace in those final moments.
He wasn’t improving, and ultimately passed away peacefully. While his family is heartbroken, they’re comforted knowing he’s no longer suffering, according to a source.
Eric felt it was the right time for him to pass away, and he accepted it. Though it was a sad time, particularly for his children, he made sure to express his love for everyone before he went.
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2026-02-21 01:20