Emily in Paris actor Pierre Deny dead at 69

Pierre Deny has died at the age of 69.

The French actor was best known internationally for his role in the Netflix hit Emily in Paris.

"It is with deep emotion that we announce the passing of Pierre Deny this Monday (May 25) following a sudden and severe case of ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis)," his daughters announced in a statement released to newswire service AFP.

Deny started out in theatre in the 1980s before moving into TV, Deadline reports. He was a familiar face on French TV for his roles in more than 60 mainstream shows such as Under the Sun, Une Femme d'Honneur, and Cinq Soeurs, as well as long-running soaps Plus Belle La Vie and Tomorrow Is Ours, appearing in more than 300 episodes of the latter as the empathetic physician Renaud Dumaze.

More recently, he broke out internationally in the role of Louis de Leon in Emily in Paris, the CEO of the luxury fashion conglomerate JVMA, working alongside stars Lily Collins and Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu.

ALS, a form of motor neuron disease (MND), is a progressive condition that has struck down several high-profile figures, with recent victims including Grey's Anatomy alum Eric Dane and rugby league star Rob Burrow.