Jessica Chastain announced this week that her ‘beautiful’ maternal grandmother Marilyn Herst is currently battling breast cancer.
‘She’s a total bada**, and I know she’ll get through this,’ Jessica shared in an emotional Instagram post breaking the news.
Noting that October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, she revealed Marilyn had asked her to urge her fans to get their mammograms.
‘You are so important to so many people – please make this a priority,’ the Interstellar actress wrote, adding a heart emoji.
The 47-year-old has always been close to Marilyn, bringing her along as her Oscar date the first time she was nominated in 2012 for The Help.
Jessica Chastain announced this week that her ‘beautiful’ maternal grandmother Marilyn Herst is currently battling breast cancer
‘My beautiful grandma Marilyn, who many of you have met at different events, was recently diagnosed with breast cancer,’ Jessica wrote on Instagram this Friday.
‘This week, I flew to meet with her amazing doctors and surgeons who are providing her the best possible care. I’m beyond grateful to the incredible hospital staff. She’s a total badass, and I know she’ll get through this.’
The A Most Violent Year actress added: ‘In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, she asked me to remind all of you: schedule your mammogram today. You are so important to so many people—please make this a priority.’
Her message was accompanied by a video she took of Marilyn wearing her hospital gown and urging viewers ‘to observe Breast Cancer Month.’
Marilyn recalled that she discovered she was ill after she ‘felt a small, tiny thing in my breast. I did mention it in my annual physical, and had my mammogram, and I am being treated now for positive breast cancer.’
She noted how ‘grateful’ she feels ‘for the fact that I found it so early, because it’s so treatable, but if you don’t take care of yourself and check yourself or even have your regular mammograms, you may not catch it early and it may not help you. So, I really want you to go out there and do that. Please? For me?’
Jessica previously spoke about Marilyn was the reason she first caught the acting bug as a child and decided to pursue show business as a career.
She recalled having a ‘very active imagination’ as a child – ‘and then my grandma took me to a play. She made it clear that this was a professional theatre company, that this was their job – she wanted me to know that it was a treat.’
The 47-year-old has always been close to Marilyn, bringing her along as her Oscar date the first time she was nominated in 2012 for The Help; pictured at the Oscars
‘She’s a total bada**, and I know she’ll get through this,’ Jessica shared in an emotional Instagram post breaking the news
Noting that October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, she revealed Marilyn had asked her to urge her fans to get their mammograms; pictured at the 2023 Tony Awards
‘You are so important to so many people – please make this a priority,’ the Interstellar actress wrote, adding a heart emoji
Her message was accompanied by a video she took of Marilyn wearing her hospital gown and urging viewers ‘to observe Breast Cancer Month’
‘My beautiful grandma Marilyn, who many of you have met at different events, was recently diagnosed with breast cancer,’ Jessica wrote on Instagram this Friday
Jessica previously spoke about Marilyn was the reason she first caught the acting bug as a child and decided to pursue show business as a career
Jessica continued: ‘So then I saw a little girl on stage and I was like, OK, so this is totally my job, too. This is what I’m going to do. I’m ready.’
In 2012, she was nominated for best supporting actress at the Oscars for her role in The Help, and Marilyn was her plus-one on the red carpet.
Jessica affectionately described Oscar night with Marilyn as ‘one of the best days of my life. Just watching her watch everything.’
She dished that her grandmother ‘was just goo-goo. She said it was the best day of her life,’ via an interview with The Guardian.