Bryan Randall, the longtime partner of award-winning actress Sandra Bullock, has died, family members said. Randall, who was 57 at the time, was particularly battling the neurodegenerative disease amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease.
“It is with great sadness that we share in the peaceful passing of Brian Randall on August 5th after a 3-year battle with illness,” his family said in a statement to CBS News. “Brian chose early on to keep his journey with ALS private, and those of us caring for him have done our best to accommodate his request.”
The statement thanked the “diligent doctors” and “incredible nurses” who helped care for him, “sacrificing so often their families to be with ours.” The family pleaded for privacy as they grieved at the “impossibility of saying goodbye to Brian”.
ALS causes the motor neurons that run from the spinal cord to the brain to deteriorate, leaving the brain unable to control muscle movement. As the disease progresses, people eventually lose their ability to speak, eat, move, and breathe ALS Association.
Bullock, 59, has been with Randall since about 2015 after he photographed her son Louis’ birthday. In a December 2021 interview with Red table talkShe called him a “saint”.
“It evolved on a non-human level,” she said, saying she adopted her daughter, Lila, shortly after they began dating.
She said, “I found the love of my life.”
Besides the two children Bullock adopted, Randall also had a daughter.
“It’s the best thing ever,” she said of the couple’s relationship. “…I need no paper to be a faithful partner… I need not be asked to weather a storm with a good man.”
Pollock’s sister, pastry chef Jesine Pollock Prado, honored her sister’s partner on Monday, saying she’s convinced he’s “found the best fishing spot in paradise and is already casting his lure in rivers flowing with salmon.”
“ALS is a tough disease but there is some comfort in knowing he had the best caretakers in my wonderful sister and the group of nurses I gathered who helped her take care of him in their home,” said Bullock-Prado. “Rest in peace, Brian.”
His family suggested that donations be made to the ALS Association or the Sean M. Healey & AMG Center for ALS at Massachusetts General Hospital.