Patrick Swayze back in the hospital
Critics packed the small meeting room, ready to take a first hand peek at Patrick Swayze who is starring in the A&E series “The Beast,” premiering Thursday.
The actor has gone public with his battle with pancreatic cancer, a disease that offers a limited prognosis.
But minutes after the session began, A&E announced he had checked himself into the hospital with pneumonia. The producers said they think it’s just a bump (“We’ve had mornings like this before,” says a producer. “We follow his lead. We shoot when he’s ready to work.”).
All 13 episodes were already shot with Swayze.
The pilot was shot before the network discovered he had cancer, but was picked up after the news was released.
“He’s been an inspiraton for me. I can’t help by to respect him,” says co-star Travis Fimmel. “He’s an inspiration for me. He makes the little things seem so unimportant.”
He added that “the sickest thing about him is his jokes.”
The series is a cop show with Swayze playing tough guy Barker who may or may not have gone rogue. The pilot was shot around Christmas and then the network picked it up. Which was about the same time when Swayze checked into Stanford Medical.
The decision went around to stay with Swayze, who is giving the performance of his career in this meaty drama.
An A&E rep says that they took the added financial risk to work with Swayze and that another actor was never considered for the role. Which begs the question – what happens in the future with Swayze apparently .
A&E will run 13 episodes with Swayze in the lead. If they get picked up for a second season, they intend to continue with Swayze depending on his health.