The actor also appeared in Aussie soap Home & Away

The death of Dannii Minogue‘s ex-husband, Julian McMahon, at the age of 56 has been announced.

Julian, best known for his roles in Nip/Tick and the Fantastic Four, was married to Dannii between 1994 and 1995.

Julian has died (Credit: SplashNews.com)

Julian McMahon dead at 56

Last night (Friday, July 4), it was announced that Australian-American actor Julian McMahon had died.

The star had been battling cancer, which had not been publicly announced. He passed away in Clearwater, Florida, on Wednesday, July 2.

His wife, Kelly Paniagua, shared the sad news in a statement.

His deepest wish was to bring joy into as many lives as possible.

“With an open heart, I wish to share with the world that my beloved husband, Julian McMahon, died peacefully this week after a valiant effort to overcome cancer,” she said.

“Julian loved life. He loved his family. He loved his friends. He loved his work, and he loved his fans. His deepest wish was to bring joy into as many lives as possible,” she then continued.

“We ask for support during this time to allow our family to grieve in privacy. And we wish for all of those to whom Julian brought joy, to continue to find joy in life. We are grateful for the memories,” she then added.

Julian appeared in a wide array of movies and shows (Credit: CoverImages.com)

Julian McMahon’s life and career

Born in Sydney in 1968, Julian was the son of Sir William McMahon, who would go on to become Prime Minister of Australia in 1971.

He went on to study at the private boys-only Sydney Grammar School, before briefly studying law at the University of Sydney, and economics at the University of Wollongong. However, he found no interest in his studies and turned to a career in modelling in the 1980s.

In the 1990s he landed one of his first major roles in Home & Away, appearing in 150 episodes.

His first major film role came in 1992 comedy Exchange Lifeguards (Wet & Wild in the US). He soon then began appearing in American shows, such as Will & Grace, Profiler, and Charmed.

Between 2003 and 2010, he became widely known for his role in Nip/Tuck as arrogant plastic surgeon Dr Christian Troy. The role earned him a Golden Globe nomination.

One of his biggest movie roles came in 2005, when he played Doctor Doom in the Fantastic Four movie. He then returned for the sequel in 2007.

Roles in Marvel’s Runaways, FBI, and FBI: Most Wanted followed. His final TV role was in 2025, when he appeared in the Netflix series The Residence.

Tributes have been paid (Credit: CoverImages.com)

Julian’s love life

Julian was married three times. His first marriage was to Dannii Minogue, who he met on the set of Home & Away in 1991. Her song, This Is It, was about their hopes and dreams as a couple.

However, they spent most of their marriage apart due to their schedules, and in 1995, they divorced. Dannii later cited her negative relationship with Julian’s mother had been an issue in their marriage from the beginning.

“There was no relationship, she wouldn’t speak to me, I wasn’t allowed to be near her in the house, she said she wasn’t coming to the wedding,” she told Seven in 2019.

The singer hasn’t reacted to the news of her ex-husband’s death (Credit: YouTube)
Dannii also spoke of the toll their schedules had on the marriage, with Julian living in the US and Dannii in London.

“I was travelling every two weeks to see him, and I not only ran out of money – I was in debt,” she said. After their split, they never spoke again.

Julian then tied the knot with actor Brooke Burns between 1999 and 2001. They had one daughter together. In 2014, he then tied the knot with Kelly Paniagua.

Fans have paid tribute (Credit: Coverimages.com)

Tributes pour in

Tributes have been paid to the star. “This one truly hurts. Not only was he a childhood fav but also an Actor I looked up to & lit up every time he popped up in a cast list. My heart truly goes out to his Friends & Loved Ones. RIP!!! You Will Be Missed,” one fan tweeted.

“My God, an actor of my generation gone too soon,” another then said.

“Rest In Peace #JulianMcmahon You will be missed,” a third then wrote.