Ian McKellen says his fat suit prevented much worse injuries when he fell off the stage during a West End performance in June.
“I was wearing a fat suit for Falstaff,” McKellen said in an interview published Tuesday in Saga magazine. [and that] “It saved my ribs and other joints, so I consider myself lucky.”
McKellen played John Falstaff in the stage adaptation of “Player Kings,” which merges parts 1 and 2 of Shakespeare’s “Henry IV.” Set in 1403, the play centers on rebellious nobles plotting to overthrow King Henry IV. During a battle scene, the “X-Men” actor tripped on a newspaper, causing his foot to get caught in a chair and he stumbled offstage into the front row of the audience screaming, “Help me!”
“I still haven’t healed from the fractured vertebrae and wrist,” McKellen told the magazine. “I don’t go out because I get nervous about someone running into me and I have excruciating pain in my shoulders from the impact on my whole body.”
The day after the accident, McKellen took to X, formerly Twitter, to thank fans for their overwhelming support and announce that he had been “diagnosed and treated by a team of specialists.” While he did not provide further details about his injuries, he said doctors had “assured me that my recovery will be full and speedy.”
The injuries, however, forced him to withdraw from the show and he is recovering while wearing a neck brace.
“I thought it was the end of something. It was very sad,” the “Lord of the Rings” actor told Saga. “The end didn’t mean my death, but it felt like the end of my involvement in the play.”
The “X-Men” actor said he was confident age was not a factor in his downfall.
“I have to tell myself that I’m not too old to act. It was just a bloody accident,” said the 85-year-old actor. “I didn’t lose consciousness, I didn’t get dizzy, but I haven’t been able to get back on stage and they have continued without me.”
In July, weeks after his accident, McKellen posted an Instagram post celebrating the final performance of “Player Kings” without him and announced that he would be attending the final show. The actor’s stand-in, David Semark, had taken over the role for the national tour and the final three shows.
“On the day of the 101st and final performance of Player Kings, without me, I celebrated by trimming Falstaff’s hair, which has been growing for nine months,” McKellen wrote in the caption above the character’s beard. “I will be in the audience at the matinee in Newcastle.”
