Beloved soap opera actress Marnie Schulenburg, wife of Succession's Zack Robidas, has died.
Marnie's rep, Kyle Luker at Industry Entertainment, confirmed to Deadline that the 37-year-old actress died in a Bloomfield, New Jersey, hospital. She died of metastatic breast cancer after being diagnosed at stage 4 in 2020.
Marnie openly discussed her journey with cancer on her Instagram account. She was diagnosed just before her 36th birthday, five months after giving birth to daughter Coda. Her last Instagram post was a touching reflection on being a mom to Coda while battling her illness, and it finished on a note of true optimism, making her death all the more heartbreaking.
Marnie opened up about the frustrating process of being diagnosed when she first shared the news publicly.
"Over the last 3.5 months I have seen two lactation consultants, one breast specialist and my OBGYN all to figure out what was causing my left breast to hurt when I fed with it, turn red, hot, swollen, dimple and harden but wasn’t responding to antibiotics or any treatment for severe inflammation and breast infections. I had already gotten an ultrasound in March the same day Shelter in Place was mandated that came back with a Mastitis diagnosis but the mammogram which could've given a clearer image was canceled due to me not bringing a breast pump they never told me to bring," she wrote.
"No follow up was needed after the Mastitis diagnosis and I was given antibiotics. The antibiotics didn't work within the first 72hrs which isn't uncommon (according to online forums) but my OBGYN said that it was abnormal yet continued to prescribe another round of a different antibiotic and then referred me to a breast specialist who I could only see via televisit. We tried a third round to which I stopped halfway through due to how poorly I was feeling."
"Finally another ultrasound and this time I brought a [expletive] pump. Three antibiotics, one nipple cream, two ultrasounds, two mammograms, and three biopsies before it was finally confirmed that I had breast cancer," she continued.
"A most insidious kind, Inflammatory Breast Cancer which doesn't look like typical Breast Cancer, is more aggressive, effects younger women, and disguises itself as a breastfeeding infection. So it infects the one area that is your baby's life source. What kind of sick purveyor of my fate gave me the gift to bring life into this world only to try and take mine in it's place?
"Zack and I vacillate between utter devastation and fierce determination. The narrative of the life we signed on for the day we married will never be the same. Now we must adjust, stay present and [expletive] fight."
Marnie was optimistic that things were trending in the right direction but was still frustrated at how her illness impacted her life with Zack and Coda. She discussed this in what would be her final Instagram post.
"It wasn't a guarantee that I was going to be home this Mother's Day. I got released late Friday night but had to be sent home with an oxygen machine. It's not my ideal to be a 38-year-old Mom who needs an oxygen tank to survive right now. I want to be strong and beautiful for her. I want to show her how to move throughout this world with compassion, strength, vivacity, humor and joy like my Mother showed me."
"I know that me being here for her is the best gift I can give her but right now it feels like settling since she's getting a half-life version of myself. My mother showed up 100% all day everyday for me growing up or at least it seemed that way. I want to give Coda the same but I must be kind to myself and remember that nothing is permanent," she continued.
"On May 8, 2020 I found out I had Breast Cancer and truly thought my life was over. Two years later I'm still here and my chances of sticking around her better each month that goes by. So here's to remembering that nothing is permanent. To soaking up the imperfections and that the best thing you can do for your child is make them feel loved, safe and supported just like my mother did for me. Screw the oxygen mask, just remember how to breathe. Sending love to all the amazing Mama's in my life."
Marnie's husband, Zack, spoke out about her passing in a statement shared on Facebook.
"Please don't say Marnie lost her battle to cancer. It's simply not true. I watched her kick cancer's ass everyday since diagnosis," the actor wrote.
"She is incredible. We chose to attack her diagnosis with blind optimism. We only talked about the future and continued moving forward. I don't know if this was right but it's all we knew how to do."
Marnie was a Massachusetts native who moved to New York in 2006 to pursue her love of acting. Within a year, she was cast as Alison Stewart in As the World Turns. She remained with the show until its final episode in 2010 and earned a Daytime Emmy nomination for the Outstanding Younger Actress category.
