Cary Elwes Reveals Health Update After Rattlesnake Bite

Cary Elwes is still on the road to recovery after experiencing an incredibly scary situation. Days after he was airlifted to the hospital after a rattlesnake bite, Elwes took to Instagram to share an update on how he was doing. In his message, he also expressed his gratitude for the support that he’s received since the injury was first announced. 

Elwes posted a photo of his hand, which featured his ring finger wrapped in a bandage. Alongside the image, he wrote that he is “truly humbled” by the support that he’s received since it was first revealed that he was bit by a rattlesnake. The Princess Bride star continued, “Thank you all for your very kind well wishes. I am doing much better and looking forward to being “left handed” again soon!”

TMZ originally reported that Elwes was bit by a rattlesnake outside of his Malibu, California, home. The 59-year-old actor was promptly airlifted to Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center on Saturday. It was reported that the injury was serious enough that it required immediate medical attention. The publication reported that those around Elwes thought that it could be a “life-threatening” injury. 

A day after the news was reported, Elwes shared an update directly with his fans. On Instagram, he posted a gnarly photo of the injury, which saw his ring finger bruised and stitched up following the snake bite. In his caption for the photo, he included a Princess Bride joke as he wrote that he was “bit not by a ROUS but a rattlesnake,” in reference to the “Rodents Of Unusual Size” from the film. Elwes went on to share his gratitude to the emergency personnel who helped him admit the scary ordeal, writing, “Grateful to the staff of Malibu Urgent Care, LA County Fire Dept. and the staff and medical professionals at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center for their great care. Am recovering well thanks to all these wonderful folks.”

This isn’t the first time that Elwes has dealt with a serious injury. While filming The Princess Bride, he was injured twice on the set. According to Looper, he wrote about one of those instances in his book, As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride. The actor described how he “woke up in the emergency room, still in costume, to the frightening sound of stitches being sewn into my skull” after he was hit in the head with a sword by Christopher Guest. During the production, he also broke his toe.