Intestine removed, 59 pounds lost and an ostomy bag at the costume fitting: Joe Manganiello reveals he hid from Ben Affleck that he nearly died before becoming Deathstroke
In his memoir, the actor says Sofia Vergara reacted to the offer with 'Are you insane?'.
Foto: Reprodução/Warner Bros.Joe Manganiello opens up about the hardest chapter of his life in 'Bloodlines', a memoir out October 13. In 2016, the actor collapsed on the North Carolina set of the series 'Six', struck by an autoimmune disease doctors could not identify that was attacking his thyroid and digestive system. Surgeons removed his large intestine, which was hours from rupturing — his then-wife, Sofia Vergara, approved the operation as next of kin. He woke up with an ostomy bag and saw his weight plunge from 235 to 176 pounds.
Early in his recovery the phone rang: his agent said Ben Affleck wanted him as Slade Wilson, aka Deathstroke, in the standalone Batman film Affleck planned to write, direct and star in. Manganiello hid his condition from the director and crew — and even did the costume fitting with the ostomy bag underneath. 'The role contained the shred of hope that I might get my life back in some capacity', he writes.
At home, the news was not celebrated. According to the book, Sofia Vergara could not bring herself to congratulate him and exclaimed: 'Are you insane? You can't do this movie!'. Affleck's film never happened, and Manganiello's Deathstroke appeared only in the post-credits scene of Zack Snyder's 'Justice League'.
