Baywatch actor Michael Newman has died aged 68

Newman had previously spoken about living with the progressive neurological disease – which affects a person's mobility and causes stiffness and tremors – and how it affected his quality of life.

“Everything changes,” he said People in January. “All those things you thought you would do with your kids and grandkids, photos we wanted to take, all the plans I had…have been abandoned.

“It’s a slow burn. Parkinson's disease won't wait for you. It keeps plowing.”

Newman's Baywatch Alter Ego was partly based on his real life experience as a lifeguard.

The actor wasn't slated to star in the series – which also starred the likes of David Hasselhoff (Mitch Buchannon) and Pamela Anderson (CJ Parker) – and was initially employed as a stuntman.

“I was too useful for them to get rid of me,” he told the publication.

“Basically, I started out as a stuntman, and after being out of the opening credits for seven years, I was finally appointed and allowed to be at the forefront of the show.”

After his stay on BaywatchNewman retired from acting because he found it “hard” to “look natural” in front of the camera.

“Let's be honest… there aren't too many actors who have survived the years of working in Hollywood,” he said.

Admitting that there are negative aspects of the industry that led to his exit, he added: “Do you have to deal with the people who take your name off the script and put their name there? Things like that…you never get used to it.”

In late August, Newman appeared at the documentary's premiere After Baywatch: Moment in the Sun alongside former castmates Parker Stevenson, Carmen Electra, Nicole Eggert and Alexandra Paul.

Newman is survived by his wife Sarah, their son Chris, their daughter Emily and their granddaughter Charlie.

In January, buddy Baywatch Star Nicole Eggert – who played Summer Quinn – revealed she has been diagnosed with breast cancer.

– Additional reporting from NZ Herald.