Entertainment

'Dirty Dancing' star Jennifer Grey says Patrick Swayze had 'tears in his eyes' when he apologized for how he treated her on a prior movie set

Jennifer Grey and Patrick Swayze.
Jennifer Grey and Patrick Swayze attend the premiere of "Dirty Dancing" at the Gemini Theater on August 17, 1987 in New York City. Jim Smeal/Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images
Read in app

"Dirty Dancing" star Jennifer Grey recently shared more details about her relationship with costar Patrick Swayze while on "The View" Tuesday promoting her new memoir "Out of the Corner," describing a moment where Swayze had "tears in his eyes" apologizing to her. 

Though there is palpable heat between them on screen as student Frances "Baby" Houseman (Grey) and dance instructor Johnny Castle (Swayze) in the classic romance, Grey has admitted that they didn't always get along because of an earlier experience working together on the 1984 action film "Red Dawn." 

Grey told the hosts on "The View" that Swayze would play "pranks" on her on set that she didn't like. She also said he was sometimes "late" to set in New Mexico where "Red Dawn" shot. 

The "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" star said Swayze acted like "the boss of everybody" working on the film.

"It was just like macho and I just couldn't take it," Grey said. "I was just like, 'Please, this guy, enough with him.'" 

So, Grey admitted to being very hesitant when those involved with "Dirty Dancing" suggested Swayze for the role of Johnny because of Swayze's dance background. 

But she admitted on "The View" that during the screen test for the film, Swayze convinced Grey to change her mind about him. 

Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey in a scene from the film 'Dirty Dancing', 1987.
Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey in a scene from "Dirty Dancing."  Vestron/Getty Images

"He pulled me down the hall and said to me, 'I love you, I love you and I'm so sorry. I know you don't want me to do the movie,'" Grey said, impersonating Swayze's accent and mumbling. 

"And he got the tears in his eyes. And I got the tears in my eyes, not for the same reason," she continued. "And he goes, 'we could kill it, we could kill it if we did this.'"

She said she wasn't quite convinced, thinking he may be working her over but then, "we go in there and he takes me in his arms and I'm like, 'Oh boy.'" 

She admitted that from that point on there was "no competition" between Swayze and any other actor who was up for the part of Johnny.

"He was like the easy chair I'd been dreaming of," Grey told "The View" hosts. 

Jennifer Grey
Jennifer Grey.  Amy Sussman / Getty Images

But the actor, who recently confirmed she'd reprise her role as Baby in the "Dirty Dancing" sequel, told People in April that she and Swayze "weren't a natural match" while filming the dance movie, either.

"And our being forced to be together created a kind of a synergy, or like a friction," she told the magazine, about her chemistry with Swayze, who died in 2009. 

Their relationship way presumably still rocky after "Dirty Dancing" because Grey told People, "I feel like if I could say anything to him now I would say, 'I'm so sorry that I couldn't just appreciate and luxuriate in who you were, instead of me wishing you were more like what I wanted you to be.'"

In her memoir, Grey also goes into detail about her failed engagements to Matthew Broderick and Johnny Depp.

"Out of the Corner" is available now.

Read next

Esme Mazzeo was a journalist on Insider's entertainment desk. She is passionate about writing stories that help start meaningful conversations and shine a light on the authentic representation of minorities in film + TV. She's known for her coverage of "Grey's Anatomy," "Sister Wives," "Married at First Sight," the "Sex and the City" franchise, and TV Christmas movies. She has bylines in Vulture, Marie Claire, Elle, Cosmopolitan, and more publications. She enjoys covering celebrities like Sarah Drew, Quinta Brunson, Ellen Pompeo, Jesse Williams, Christina Applegate, Selma Blair, Jennifer Lopez, Reese Witherspoon, and more. Featured Articles: Inside the making of an 'Only Murders in the Building' episode with only one line of dialogue — and why Deaf star James Caverly wants to 'dismantle' the 'tired portrayal of disabled characters on TV'From exiting 'Grey's Anatomy' to making TV history, Sarah Drew is moving forward'Abbott Elementary' creator Quinta Brunson isn't writing 'The Office' for teachers — she has a clearer visionEllen Pompeo is very ready for 'Grey's Anatomy' to be over. In fact, she's already forging a new path for herself.Former 'Grey's Anatomy' stars Jesse Williams and Sarah Drew still believe fans of Jackson and April have 'earned' and 'deserve' a spinoff