Sir Ian McKellen has shared a candid and slightly humorous reflection on ageing, mortality and still working at 86, admitting that recent health problems have changed his outlook on life, if not his desire to move on.
In an interview with The timesThe veteran actor spoke openly about his perspective following a serious fall in June 2024, when he fell off the stage during a theater performance in London and was hospitalized with a fractured wrist and a chipped vertebra.
Recalling that experience, McKellen said, “I’ve accepted that I’m not immortal, but I still function.”
He The Lord of the Rings Star explained that her thoughts about mortality now come as much from observing others as from her own physical changes.
“Really the inevitability of mortality comes not only from how you feel about yourself, but from the simple fact that your friends die, all the time,” he said.
“When you are young, death is something surprising, fascinating, but it is a characteristic of age. Death becomes always present.”
After spending three days in the hospital, McKellen did not return to his role in the stage production. player kings and later revealed that he had been dealing with what he described as “agonizing pain.”
On medical advice, he also skipped the premiere of his next film at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival. the christophersexplaining in a pre-recorded message that “better safe than sorry.”
Now, however, McKellen is back to work in a different way.
Currently appears in An ark at The Shed in New York Cityan experimental production that uses virtual reality technology.
Although he and his fellow actors are not physically present in the room, the audience sees them through virtual reality headsets.
McKellen said the format seemed like a sensible step after his accident.
“I thought it was the safest way to get back to work,” he said. The timesjoking that filming allows for breaks that live theater doesn’t. “You can’t stop live theater.”
Still, he has since returned to the stage on a limited basis and said the experience calmed him.
He noted with relief that he still enjoys acting, doesn’t find it disturbing, and can remember his lines. “Considering my age, everything is fine,” he said.
Reflecting on the deaths of close friends, McKellen said he has found some comfort in the way people approach the end of life.
“Regrets? I’ve had a few,” he admitted.
“It is never satisfying when someone dies, but it comforts me to know that when people close to me are dying, they seem willing and even welcoming.”
Despite his reflections, McKellen made it clear that he is not going to slow down. “I feel like I still have more to do,” he said.
His upcoming projects include the christophersdirected by Steven Soderbergh and written by Ed Solomon, which hits theaters April 10, plus Ebenezer: A Christmas Storywhere she stars alongside Johnny Depp, scheduled for November.
He is also set to reprise his role as Magneto in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Avengers: Judgment Daywhose launch is scheduled for December.
For McKellen, acknowledging mortality hasn’t dampened his enthusiasm; If anything, it seems to have sharpened his appreciation for being able to continue doing what he loves.
