The Notebook actor Gena Rowlands has Alzheimer’s disease, says son

Rowlands, 93, who played an Alzheimer's patient in son's 2004 film, is in full dementia', says Nick Cassavetes

Gena Rowlands, the screen actor whose career spans over seven decades and includes two Oscar nominations and an honorary Academy Award, has Alzheimer's disease, according to her son Nick Cassavetes.

Speaking to Entertainment Weekly on the 20th anniversary of his film The Notebook, in which Rowlands played a character with the disease, Cassavetes said his mother, now 94 years old, was in full dementia". Rowlands memorably played Allie in the film, the older version of the character played by Rachel McAdams, whose dementia is tended to by her husband Noah (James Garner).

This article was amended on 25 June, 2024 to correct Gena Rowlands's age. She turned 94 on 19 June.