Director Matthew Felker (“After Baywatch: Moment in the Sun” on Hulu) paid a moving tribute to his hero, the late but great “Baywatch” actor Michael Newman, who passed away on October 20th, 2024, at the age of 68. Newman was battling Parkinson’s for the last 18 years.
In his Instagram story, Felker posted, “I lost my hero yesterday. As I told him before he left this earth ‘I will see you again. I promise’.”
In a more elaborate post on social media, Felker remarked, “Few of us are lucky enough to have someone like Mike Newman enter and change their life. I met Mike five years ago in the beginning stages of a ‘Baywatch’ series. After five years of following his life and becoming very close friends, Mike was able to see the series come to fruition. The amount of issues this series had and hurdles was like no other. Mike was not only a real life hero. He was a competitor through and through.”
“I knew how much this series meant to him and his life,” Felker acknowledged. “There were times I wanted throw it all in the trash… and then I remembered Mike. I couldn’t let him down.. I couldn’t quit. He never did. We succeeded together pulling something off that was nearly impossible against hurdles you wouldn’t believe. Seeing him light up at our premiere in Santa Monica was worth all the bullshit I endured for years. He said ‘he did it… he really did it!’ You did it Mike.”
“I got to see Mike before he passed away,” Felker revealed. “He was unconscious mostly… when I showed up he was awake almost like a miracle and looked at me and said ‘you’re just in time’ and laughed. That was Mike. He found humor all the way until the end.”
“Before I left him, we read him letters and played videos from friends from all walks of life. He knew he was loved. Before I left him he grabbed my hand as tight as he could and looked me dead in the eyes and just nodded, I nodded and said. ‘We will see each other again.. I promise.’ A few days later. I lost my friend. A hero. My hero. Thanks for coming into my life ‘Newmie.’ Even if it was a brief time.”
To make a donation in memory of Michael Newman, please visit the Michael J. Fox Foundation official website (to help find a cure for Parkinson’s).
To learn more about Matthew Felker, follow him on Instagram.
For more information on “After Baywatch: Moment in the Sun,” follow its Instagram page (and stream the show on Hulu).
