He also became known for his comedic appearances on sitcoms Frasier and Extras for which he received a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series nomination.

He gained further stardom when he portrayed Professor Charles Xavier in the X-Men film series (2000–2014), reprising the role in Logan (2017) and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022).

[10] He later attributed his acting career to his English teacher there, Cecil Dormand, who "put a copy of Shakespeare in [Stewart's] hand" and told him to get up and perform.

In 1969, he had a brief TV cameo role as Horatio, opposite Ian Richardson's Hamlet, in a performance of the gravedigger scene as part of episode six of Sir Kenneth Clark's Civilisation television series.

[25] He made his Broadway debut as Snout in Peter Brook's legendary 1970 production[26] of A Midsummer Night's Dream, then moved to the Royal National Theatre in the early 1980s.

[28] Stewart preferred classical theatre to other genres, asking Doctor Who actress Lalla Ward why she would work in science fiction or on television.

He was reluctant to sign the standard contract of six years, but did so as he, his agent, and others with whom Stewart consulted, all believed the new show would quickly fail, and that he would return to his London stage career after making some money.

[37] When Stewart was picked for the role of Captain Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987–1994), the Los Angeles Times called him an "unknown British Shakespearean actor".

[34] He eventually came to better understand the cultural differences between the stage and television and relaxed to a degree at work,[32] and his favourite technical line became "spacetime continuum".

When questioned about his role's significance compared to his distinguished Shakespearean career, he said, "The fact is all of those years in Royal Shakespeare Company—playing all those kings, emperors, princes and tragic heroes—were nothing but preparation for sitting in the captain's chair of the Enterprise.

"[42] The accolades he has received include the readers of TV Guide in 1992 choosing him with Cindy Crawford, of whom he had never heard, as television's "most bodacious" man and woman.

He also starred as Scrooge in a 1999 television film version of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol, receiving a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination for his performance.

He voiced the pig Napoleon in a made-for-TV film adaptation of George Orwell's Animal Farm and guest starred in the Simpsons episode "Homer the Great" as Number One.

He plays a recurring role as CIA Deputy Director Avery Bullock, lending his likeness as well as his voice on the animated series American Dad!.

[33] Although he remained associated with the Royal Shakespeare Company, the lengthy filming for the series had prevented him from participating in most other works, leaving a "gaping hole" of many years in his CV as a Shakespearean actor, causing him to miss opportunities to play such notable roles as Hamlet, Romeo, and Richard III.

Furthermore, this campaign changed Stewart's image as a serious actor by emphasising his sense of humour, which led to frequent guest appearances in various comedy programs.

[68] On 18 November 2012, Stewart appeared on stage at St Martin's Theatre in the West End for a 60th anniversary performance of Agatha Christie's The Mousetrap, the world's longest-running play.

Stewart provided the narration for Nine Worlds, an astronomical tour of the Solar System and nature documentaries such as The Secret of Life on Earth and Mountain Gorilla.

In these roles, Stewart has regularly attended graduation ceremonies in the UK and Hong Kong and teaches master classes for drama students.

[84] In a 2018 poll for Yorkshire Day, Stewart was ranked the third greatest Yorkshireman ever behind Monty Python comedian Michael Palin and fellow actor Sean Bean.

[91] From 2017 until 2021, Stewart shared with Hugh Jackman the Guinness World Record for the longest career as a live-action Marvel Comics superhero for his portrayal of Professor X; they were subsequently eclipsed by Tobey Maguire and Willem Dafoe.

[93][94] In 2006, Stewart made a short video against domestic violence for Amnesty International,[95] in which he recollected his father's physical attacks on his mother and the effect it had on him as a child.

[100] In 2009, Stewart gave a speech at the launch of Created Equal, a book about women's rights, talking again about his personal experiences with domestic violence and the impacts they had on him.

"[101] Additionally, in October 2011, he presented a BBC Lifeline Appeal on behalf of Refuge, discussing his own experience of domestic violence and interviewing a woman whose daughter was murdered by her ex-husband.

[103] He is a patron of the United Nations Association – UK, and delivered a speech at UNA-UK's UN Forum 2012 on Saturday 14 July 2012,[104] speaking of his father's experiences in the Second World War, and how he believed the UN was the best legacy of that period.

[113] Daniel is also an actor,[114] and appeared alongside his father in the film Death Train, the sitcom Blunt Talk, and the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "The Inner Light", playing his son in the latter.

"[122] He was critical of the Iraq War and UK government legislation in the area of civil liberties, in particular its plans to extend detention without charge to 42 days for terrorist suspects.

[132] In August 2014, Stewart was one of 200 public figures who signed a letter to The Guardian expressing their hope that Scotland would vote to remain part of the United Kingdom in September's referendum on that issue.

"[9] In 2015, Stewart defended the Belfast-based Christian bakers who were penalised for discrimination after refusing to bake a cake with words reading, "Support Gay Marriage".

He holds a Motorsport UK competition licence and competed in the 2012 Silverstone Classic Celebrity Challenge race, finishing ninth, 3 m 02.808 s behind winner Kelvin Fletcher.