Days of Our Lives and Melrose Place Actor Patrick Muldoon Dies From a Sudden Heart Attack at 57

LOS ANGELES — Hollywood is reeling today as Days of Our Lives and Starship Troopers icon Patrick Muldoon has passed away at 57. The beloved actor reportedly suffered a fatal heart attack at his Beverly Hills home on the morning of April 19.

The Soap Royalty Who Escaped the Box

Fans are crushed. The sudden loss has sent shockwaves across Stan Twitter and the broader entertainment industry. For a generation of television fans, Muldoon was the ultimate nineties heartthrob, defining an era of daytime television as Austin Reed. His transition from daytime soap royalty to big-screen cult classic star paved the way for many modern actors looking to escape the soap-opera pigeonhole.

Beyond the screen, his quiet reinvention as an indie film executive producer proved he was much more than just a nostalgic face.

A Quiet Life Away From the Chaos

Here is the uncomfortable truth about Hollywood legacies: the public often freezes actors in their most famous decades. It happens constantly.

While the timeline is currently flooded with throwback clips of his high-profile nineties romance with Denise Richards, Muldoon’s modern life was remarkably grounded. He traded the chaotic tabloid cycle for a deeply private, committed relationship with music producer Miriam Rothbart, proving that sometimes the ultimate power move is walking away from the noise entirely.

The couple had been in a committed relationship since 2023.

It ended suddenly. TMZ and Deadline were among the first outlets to confirm the heartbreaking news. According to the reports, Muldoon spent his final morning at home with Rothbart before going to take a shower.

She later discovered him unconscious on their bathroom floor. His sister, Shana Muldoon-Zappa, confirmed that paramedics arrived swiftly at the California property but could not revive him.

The Guitar, The Aliens, and Behind the Camera

Muldoon first crashed into the pop-culture consciousness while still in college, securing a spot on Saved By the Bell before landing his career-defining role on Days of Our Lives from 1992 to 1995. He later brought a menacing charm to Melrose Place as Richard Hart and famously fought giant alien bugs as Zander Barcalow in the 1997 sci-fi satire Starship Troopers. But true industry insiders knew his real passion lived in the recording studio.

Frequently spotted with his guitar, he fronted the rock band The Sleeping Masses, maintaining a raw, rock-and-roll spirit throughout his entire life.

He built worlds. His work behind the camera was equally prolific.

Muldoon served as an executive producer on gritty indie films like Arkansas, The Tribes of Palos Verdes, and Marlowe. He was also slated to release a new film titled Dirty Hands later this year.

This shift into producing showed a sophisticated evolution from his early days of acting alongside Tori Spelling and Lisa Rinna. He wasn’t just waiting for the phone to ring; he was actively greenlighting the kind of cinema he wanted to see in the world.

The Final Act

The industry is now looking toward his final posthumous contributions. Just recently, Muldoon had been heavily involved behind the scenes on Kockroach, an upcoming high-profile project directed by Matt Ross and starring Chris Hemsworth and Taron Egerton.

Between his producing credits on films like The Card Counter, his enduring music, and a fandom that spans three decades, Patrick Muldoon’s influence will undeniably echo through the industry for years to come.