Ian McKellen Says His Doctors ‘Promise’ Full Recovery After Stage Fall

Sir Ian McKellen Updating fans about his condition after taking Falling on stage in London last month During a performance Players Kings,

On Tuesday, the 85-year-old actor took to X (formerly Twitter) to detail his recovery from the incident, which occurred on June 17 while he was starring as John Falstaff in the adaptation of Parts 1 and 2. Henry IV. According to BBC, he fell off the stage and called for help,

“Just over two weeks after my on-stage accident, I want to reassure my well-wishers that my injuries (to my wrist and neck) are healing well,” McKellen wrote in a social media update. “My doctors promise a full recovery – but only if I stay off work for the next few weeks.”

Means the doctor’s orders Lord of the Rings The star won’t be able to take the show on the road — literally. On Monday, the show’s producers said Players Kings confirmed that McKellen will not return for the show’s national tour,

Continuing his post, the Tony and Olivier Award-winning actor explained his absence from the tour, advising fans to see the production during its tour in England. The campaign will kick off in Bristol on July 3 and conclude in Newcastle, England on July 27.

“In the meantime the show will go on and the Player Kings company will begin their four-week tour without me. My assistant, David Semark, who did a wonderful job on the final performance at the Noel Coward Theatre in London’s West End, will be playing Falstaff again in Bristol, Birmingham, Norwich and Newcastle,” McKellen explained.

Production remained halted for several days after the incident. Reboots on June 20 with David Semark McKellen in the role. The producers shared that Semark will serve indefinitely mr holmes The star is “recovering following his fall.”

At the end of his post on Tuesday, McKellen admitted to feeling uncomfortable at disappointing audiences who came specifically to see him in the role. He still says that while this is certainly not the result he hoped for, the production is just as good as ever.

“Any actor will say that missing a single performance feels somewhat shameful, even if one is not guilty. None of us wants to disappoint our audiences. But Robert Icke’s superb production holds up. His mise en scène is compelling throughout and his actors, including Toheeb Jimho and Richard Coyle as Prince Hal and his father, are in top form,” McKellen wrote. “Go see it for yourself!”

A few days after his fall, ET spoke with Veronica Muzyka — who was a viewer at the Noel Coward Theatre to see the film. Players Kings during the incident — and he said at first he thought McKellen’s accident was part of the play.

“So he fell into the orchestra pit right in front of our eyes and he was screaming something like, ‘Help,’ and I thought it was part of the play because there were a lot of wounded people, like, you know, it’s a war drama, and yeah, it was quite shocking,” she recalled.

He added: “He seemed to be walking normally on stage. I didn’t see any stumbling. Maybe there was some slippery cloth or something and it must have been a very small thing because he was acting and walking naturally until the last step when he actually fell and that’s why I thought it was staged.”

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