Actor Bob Odenkirk collapsed on the set of his hit show “Better Call Saul” Tuesday night and had to be rushed to the hospital. Now, fellow actors are sending him messages of prayer and support.
TMZ broke the story of the Emmy-winner’s emergency, reporting that he was shooting his critically-acclaimed AMC drama, which is a prequel to the acclaimed series “Breaking Bad,” when he “went down, and was immediately surrounded by crew members who called an ambulance.”
While the cause of the star’s collapse has not yet been made public, the outlet continued, “We’re told it’s unclear if he was conscious when he was transported, but a source close to Odenkirk tells us he is still in the hospital under the care of doctors.”
Odenkirk’s colleagues have been sending him well-wishes on social media.
Actor Michael McKean, who plays Saul’s brother Chuck, tweeted, “Sending huge love to our @mrbobodenkirk. You got this, brother.”
His former “Breaking Bad” co-star, Aaron Paul said on Instagram, “I love you my friend.”
Meanwhile, the lead of that show, Bryan Cranston posted a photo of the pair with this message: “Today I woke up to news that has made me anxious all morning. My friend, Bob Odenkirk collapsed last night on the set of Better Call Saul. He is in the hospital in Albuquerque and receiving the medical attention he needs but his condition is not known to the public as yet. Please take a moment in your day today to think about him and send positive thoughts and prayers his way, thank you.”
Odenkirk’s close friend and comedy partner, David Cross tweeted, “I will share what I know when I can but Bob is one of the strongest people I know both physically and spiritually.” He added, “He WILL get through this.”
As The Daily Wire has reported, while Hollywood is currently showing Odenkirk support, in the past it has canceled work from earlier in his career:
“[Netflix] yanked a 2015 episode of “W/Bob and David” because one of the sketch show’s leads appeared in blackface.
David Cross’s character in the episode darkened his skin, a measure made to illustrate how police allegedly train their rage on black, not white, Americans.
Cross tried to explain the setup, which included black actor Keegan-Michael Key as part of the bit.
‘Hey all, Netflix is going to pull this sketch from ‘With Bob & David’ because the ridiculous, foolish character I play puts on ‘black face’ at one point,” Cross wrote in the tweet. “The point of this was to underscore the absurdity…well, here’s your last chance to figure it out.’
Odenkirk publicly defended the skit, saying, ““[W]e considered every choice we made doing our show, and always aimed to make you laugh and think, and never make an obvious or easy point…that very much includes this sketch. Our comedy is always about the human element, never about making a political point.”