Which ‘The Notebook’ Cast Members Are Still Alive?
The Notebook has been touching hearts since the movie came out in 2004. The Nicholas Sparks book on which it is based has been touching them since it was published in 1996, but the cast of the film are whom many fans associate with the romantic tale. It has been 17 years, and given the subject matter of senior care, we have said goodbye to some of The Notebook cast members.
These ‘The Notebook’ cast members still work regularly
The Notebook cast begins with Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams as Noah and Allie. Their epic romance constitutes the bulk of the story. Both cast members continue to be prolific. Gosling recently starred in First Man and Blade Runner 2049 and he’s gearing up to play the Wolfman. McAdams recently starred in Eurovision Song Contest and will return in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
James Marsden played the third component in Allie and Noah’s love triangle, a wounded soldier Allie meets as a nurse. Marsden recently starred in The Stand, Dead to Me and Mrs. America all in 2020, the same year Sonic the Hedgehog came out. Joan Allen played Allie’s disapproving mother. Since The Notebook Allen was in the Bourne franchise, The Killing, Room and more. She’s currently working on the Stephen King series Lisey’s Story.
David Thornton played Allie’s father and he keeps working too with roles on Law & Order: SVU, Homeland and various movies. In 2020 he appeared on Edie Falco’s series Tommy and the movie Darcy. And Kevin Connolly played Noah’s friend Gil. You know him as E from Entourage, and now he directs.
Two ‘The Notebook’ cast members have died
The bookending story of The Notebook features Duke (James Garner) reading the story of Allie and Noah to a woman (Gena Rowlands) in a retirement home. Garner died 10 years after The Notebook released in 2014. At age 86, his credits went back to 1956, notably TV series Maverick and The Rockford Files and movies like Support Your Local Sheriff and The Americanization of Emily.
Sam Shepard played Noah’s father in The Notebook. A playwright and actor, Shepard died in 2017 at the age of 73.
Gena Rowlands hasn’t acted for a few years
At 90, Rowlands is still alive, although she appears to have stopped acting. Her last credits were 2014 movies Six Dance Lessons in Six Weeks and Parts Per Billion, and a short film in 2017. She deserves to take a rest though. She’s been working since 1954, and 10 more years after The Notebook. Rowlands is also the mother of The Notebook director Nick Cassavetes.
