10 Actors Who Made TV Shows When They Knew They Were Dying

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These actors gave it their all until the very end. Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re looking at actors who worked on TV shows, knowing they had illnesses that turned fatal.

Transcript

00:00Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're looking at actors who worked on TV shows knowing they

00:09had illnesses that turned fatal.

00:11Since some actors' fates are tied to their fictional characters, a few spoilers will

00:15follow.

00:22Larry Hagman – Dallas

00:24Larry Hagman created a TV icon in J.R. Ewing.

00:36The primetime soap opera was revived over 20 years after Dallas finished its initial

00:40run.

00:41Hagman came along for the ride despite being diagnosed with throat cancer in 2011.

00:45It wasn't the first time Hagman had faced a life-threatening illness, overcoming liver

00:49cancer in the 90s.

00:50By the time The Dallas Revival premiered in June 2012, Hagman was in remission.

01:09Only a month later, though, Hagman learned that he had developed MDS.

01:12This progressed to leukemia, which claimed his life the following November.

01:15He had already filmed a few episodes for season two, which worked Hagman's cancer diagnosis

01:19into the plot while revisiting the classic Who Shot J.R.? storyline.

01:34Katherine E. Coulson – Twin Peaks

01:36While making Eraserhead, David Lynch envisioned Katherine Coulson holding a log.

01:40This provided the basis for one of Twin Peaks' fan-favorite characters, Margaret Lanterman,

01:46Years later, at her 50th college reunion, Coulson announced that she had lung cancer.

01:58This didn't stop Coulson from appearing in the long-overdue Twin Peaks revival.

02:02Four days after wrapping her scenes, Coulson passed away.

02:13The revival wouldn't air for another two years, with the premiere dedicated to Coulson.

02:17Echoing Coulson's incurable condition, the log lady accepts her fate and dies offscreen.

02:24Co-star Miguel Ferrer also died before the revival debuted.

02:27Although Ferrer received a fatal throat cancer diagnosis, he filmed several Twin Peaks episodes

02:32while still working on NCIS.

02:34The veteran actor died peacefully in his home Thursday morning after a long battle with

02:39cancer.

02:40He was surrounded by friends and family.

02:43Katherine Joosten – Desperate Housewives

02:59Katherine Joosten worked as a nurse before appearing as a guest star on numerous shows.

03:02Her most acclaimed role would be as Karen McCluskey on Desperate Housewives.

03:06Joosten won two Emmys for playing the cranky yet lovable neighbor.

03:09As the series entered its sixth season in 2009, Joosten was diagnosed with lung cancer.

03:14It would be Joosten's second round against the disease, having her right lung removed

03:17several years earlier.

03:19Although her health declined, she continued to play Mrs. McCluskey until the final episode.

03:35Joosten and the show's producers saw eye-to-eye on how her character's journey should end.

03:40Joosten's lung cancer claims Karen's life, but not before she takes the stand in a crucial

03:43trial.

03:44Twenty days after the finale aired, Joosten passed away.

03:57Christopher Evan Welch – Silicon Valley

04:15Christopher Evan Welch's scene-stealing turn as the quirky billionaire Peter Gregory

04:19should have been a major turning point for his career.

04:22The role would instead be a bookend Welch didn't live to see.

04:25Welch received his lung cancer diagnosis around 2010, about three years before he started

04:29shooting his scenes for Silicon Valley.

04:41After learning his cancer had spread to his brain, Welch reportedly told his wife and

04:45doctor,

04:46Although Welch underwent surgery following the first episode's taping, his co-workers

04:51were led to believe he would pull through.

04:53It came as a shock to them when Welch died mid-production, only filming five episodes.

04:57Rather than recast, Peter Gregory canonically died the following season in an absurdly tragic

05:02way.

05:16Rock Hudson – Dynasty

05:18This legendary actor closed out his career with a recurring role on Dynasty.

05:26Only a few months before Rock Hudson debuted as Daniel Reese, he was diagnosed with AIDS.

05:31Hudson kept his condition private for over a year, making a public announcement on July

05:3525, 1985.

05:36By this point, he'd already finished his arc on Dynasty, which wrapped early due to

05:40his declining health.

05:50Hudson was aware of his diagnosis during a scene when he kissed Linda Evans.

05:54Still keeping his secret, Hudson was reportedly terrified that he might give AIDS to Evans.

05:58Widespread misinformation about AIDS was still common back then.

06:12Despite his best efforts to keep working, Hudson continued to struggle and died three

06:16months after disclosing his illness to the world.

06:19Patrick Swayze – The Beast

06:21One of the most popular film stars throughout the 80s and 90s, Patrick Swayze finished the

06:26on A&E's The Beast, playing morally gray FBI agent Charles Barker.

06:44Swayze shot the pilot shortly before learning he had pancreatic cancer.

06:47Swayze nonetheless remained committed to the role, filming the season over five months.

06:52All the while, Swayze underwent treatment without taking painkillers.

07:04During this difficult period, he only missed a day and a half from the shoot.

07:08Although The Beast received positive reviews, it wasn't renewed due to low ratings.

07:12Even if the series had gotten a second season, Swayze wouldn't have been able to reprise

07:15his role.

07:16Only two months after its cancellation, Swayze would sadly succumb to his disease.

07:27Alice Pierce – Bewitched

07:28This actress is best remembered for playing the definitive nosy neighbor, Gladys Kravitz

07:32from Bewitched.

07:44In the series, Gladys was always suspicious of the hocus-pocus occurring at the Stevens

07:48household.

07:49Behind the scenes, Alice Pierce had a secret of her own.

07:51Pierce was living with terminal cancer, which she chose to keep private.

07:55The showrunners might not have been aware of Pierce's diagnosis, but her condition

07:58would start to take a noticeable physical toll.

08:00Regardless, Pierce kept audiences laughing well into season two.

08:10Baby's First Paragraph was the last episode Pierce filmed before taking a turn for the

08:14worse six weeks later.

08:16While Sandra Gould inherited the role of Gladys, Pierce won a posthumous Emmy for her swan-song

08:20season.

08:32Nicholas Colasanto – Cheers

08:34Developing heart disease in the 70s, Nicholas Colasanto had trouble finding work over the

08:38next few years.

08:39Pierce was prepared to call it quits when a career-defining role came his way.

08:43Colasanto's heartfelt performance as coach Ernie Pantuso was integral throughout the

08:47early seasons of Cheers.

09:08Although Colasanto's heart condition wasn't a secret, few realized how serious it was

09:12until season three.

09:13As Colasanto started losing significant weight and forgetting his lines, some suspected he

09:17didn't have much time left.

09:34Pierce still caught many off guard when Colasanto died from a heart attack in February 1985,

09:39two months after being hospitalized for water in his lungs.

09:41While Cheers would go strong for another eight seasons, coach and Colasanto were never forgotten.

09:59Peaky Blinders

10:10From Narcissa Malfoy in the Harry Potter movies to Madame Callie in Penny Dreadful, this British

10:15actress had several memorable roles.

10:26Peaky Blinders fans will recognize her as Polly Gray, the Shelby family's tough-as-nails

10:30matriarch.

10:31Although death was commonplace on Peaky Blinders, Aunt Polly's perhaps hit us the hardest.

10:35That's because Helen McCrory died from breast cancer between the fifth and sixth series.

10:39McCrory had sworn her friends and family to secrecy as she privately went through treatment.

10:44To almost everyone else, her death seemingly came out of the blue.

10:51With the final episodes of Peaky Blinders entering production, the showrunners suddenly

10:55had to rethink certain elements.

10:57This included Polly's fate with the character dying in the series' sixth premiere.

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11:24Nancy Marchand, The Sopranos

11:38When Nancy Marchand was cast as Tony's reprehensible mother, Livia Soprano, producers

11:43knew they might be taking a risk.

11:45In addition to emphysema and COPD, Marchand had been facing lung cancer for the past few

11:49years.

11:50Marchand's agent was up front with the Sopranos showrunners, but they still wanted her.

11:54While Livia wasn't supposed to live long, Marchand's Golden Globe-winning performance

11:57convinced the team to keep her around into the second season.

12:14Marchand said shortly before her death in June 2000,

12:16Although Chase had big plans for Livia, Marchand's passing forced the series to give her a send-off

12:24in season three, using archival footage and CGI.

12:37Which TV actors do you miss the most?

12:39Let us know in the comments!

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