Taron Egerton opens up on why he dropped out of West End production: ‘One of the hardest decisions I’ve had to make’

metro.co.uk:

Welsh actor Taron Egerton has explained the heartbreaking reason why he pulled out of Mike Bartlett’s West End play Cock, just weeks after his debut. Taron was lined up for the new production alongside Bridgerton’s Jonathan Bailey, with the pair set to play the two leads.However, Rocketman actor Taron’s stint got off to a rocky start, after he fainted on stage on the opening night.The announcement then came he had dropped out of the play came after he was replaced when he tested positive for Covid-19 by understudy Joel Harper-Jackson, who then stayed in his role.

However, it was not expanded at the time on Taron’s reasoning for quitting the show, which he has now shared in a new interview. ‘Toward the end of last year, a close family member was diagnosed with cancer, and I dropped out of a film to come home and be with that person,’ he explained.‘I thought that, with the play, I was ready to go back to work, but I wasn’t. ‘I had to leave, and it was sad, and absolutely one of the hardest decisions I’ve had to make,’ he told The New York Times.The play centres around John (played by Jonathan Bailey), a man who falls in love with a woman (Jade Anouka) after taking a break from his long-term boyfriend M, who was played by Taron.

In a statement released by the Twitter account for the play, a revival of Mike Bartlett’s 2009 production Cock at London’s Ambassador Theatre, it said that understudy Joel would take over the role of M previously played by Taron.‘Joel Harper-Jackson will take over the role of M in Mike Bartlett’s razor-sharp, hilarious play Cock until the end of the run,’ it said.The statement added: ‘The part was originally played in this production by Taron Egerton, who has had to withdraw from the production due.