Stewart McLean, the Vancouver actor known for work on Virgin River, was found dead after police in British Columbia shifted his missing-person case into a homicide investigation. His remains were located in the Lions Bay area, and investigators now say they believe he was the victim of homicide.
McLean, 45, was first reported missing on May 18, four days after he was last seen at his Lions Bay home on May 15, 2026. Squamish Royal Canadian Mounted Police opened the investigation into his disappearance before transferring the case to the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team as the evidence developed.
For his family, the case that began as a search for a missing man has become a search for answers in a death investigators are treating as deliberate. McLean appeared in Virgin River, Fox's Murder in a Small Town and The CW's Arrow, and most recently portrayed a barfly in a 2026 episode of Virgin River. He also had producing credits on Please Look Away Vol. 2 and CLOUD Van-Demic!
IHIT said it is working with the BC Coroners Service and IFIS while collecting and analyzing evidence, reviewing CCTV footage and conducting interviews to build a timeline of McLean's activities before May 15, 2026. Cpl. Esther Tupper said investigators are pursuing all available leads to find answers for McLean's family, friends and loved ones, and police said the case is being treated as an isolated incident at this stage.
A spokesperson for McLean said the agency had represented him for more than a decade and described him as a respected member of Vancouver's film and television community, remembering his kindness and humour. Anyone with information is being asked to contact IHIT at 1-877-551-IHIT. The next step is the evidence itself: investigators are still trying to reconstruct what happened between the time McLean was last seen at home and the moment his remains were found.
