'JAWS' star Richard Dreyfuss messages fans as illness forces appearance cancellation
“Jaws” star Richard Dreyfuss had to cancel his appearance at this weekend’s SharkCon in Tampa, Fla., after being diagnosed with viral bronchitis. The actor announced the news in a video message posted Saturday on SharkCon’s official Instagram account.
“Hello, fellow cons. I am very, very sorry to tell you that I’ve been diagnosed with viral…viral…What is it?” Dreyfuss said in the clip. His wife, Svetlana Erokhin, could be heard off-camera clarifying that he had come down with viral bronchitis.
Richard Dreyfuss sends message to fans
Dreyfuss went on to explain, “I’ve been told by my doctors I cannot fly, and I would have to fly five hours to get [to SharkCon]. I’m terribly sorry because I had planned to be there and had been looking forward to it. But I’m unable to do so. I don’t want to get anyone else sick, and I don’t want to get sicker myself. I feel terrible about not showing up, and I feel worse about exposing you to this, apparently, very viral illness.”
The Oscar-winning actor co-starred with Roy Scheider and Robert Shaw in Steven Spielberg’s 1975 blockbuster Jaws. Dreyfuss played Matt Hooper, a witty oceanographer and shark specialist brought in to help Chief Brody take down the deadly great white.