Jeff Bridges is more than ready to go ahead with the season two premiere of his FX series “The Old Man,” three years after he contracted COVID-19 while undergoing chemotherapy.
Bridges appeared on Wednesday at the Television Critics Association summer press tour alongside his “Old Man” costar John Lithgow and executive producers Jonathan Steinberg, Dan Shotz, and Warren Littlefield. Bridges spoke about the show’s upcoming second season and gave an update on his health.
“I’m feeling great now. I’m coming back for more punishment,” Bridges said.
Bridges announced in October 2020 that he had been diagnosed with lymphoma. Early the following year he said he caught COVID-19 while undergoing chemotherapy. Bridges was in the hospital for five weeks, and told People that he was “pretty close to dying.”
In “The Old Man,” Bridges plays Dan Chase, a former CIA operative haunted by his past. The show’s first season went on a production hiatus after Bridges’ diagnosis. It resumed production in 2022 after he announced in September 2021 that he was in remission, Deadline reported.
“In the first season when I was doing these fight scenes, I had a 9-inch by 12-inch tumor in my body, in my stomach, that didn’t hurt at all,” Bridges said. “So that’s surprising to me, but I’m feeling great now.”
Bridges praised “The Old Man’s” stunt coordinators for helping him pull off some fight scenes. His costar, Lithgow, recommended that people watch Bridges in the 1972 film “Bad Company” to better “appreciate” the work he’s doing now.
“Some of the greatest scenes in ‘The Old Man’ are Jeff’s fight scenes, an old man having to summon up the strength and skill he had 50 years ago,” costar Lithgow said.
Season two of “The Old Man” will premiere on FX on September 12.
