Veteran Australian actress Heather Mitchell has opened up about her battle with cancer and how she wanted to highlight the disease in her new film.
The two-time cancer survivor revealed that it was her idea to have her character struggle with the disease in her new version Stan holiday movie, Jones’ Family Christmas.
In the film, the veteran fan favorite plays Heather, an eccentric matriarch battling cancer and desperate to bring her family together to celebrate the holiday.
‘We wanted to give an extra reason for it [the movie character’s] The desperate need for everyone to be happy,” she told the newspaper Sydney Morning Herald.
‘It was a step up in terms of performance. But we didn’t want it to be a problem.
Veteran Australian actress Heather Mitchell has opened up about her battle with cancer and how she wanted to highlight the disease in her new film
The two-time cancer survivor revealed that it was her idea to have her character struggle with the disease in her new Stan holiday film, Jones’ Family Christmas.
Mitchell was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2004. After treatment, the disease returned in 2022. Pictured: Mitchell at the 2022 Logie Awards
“It’s not about Heather’s personal health issues. It’s more about the fact that when we are confronted with the health problems of someone we love or our own, it makes us react in a certain way.”
Mitchell was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2004. After treatment, the disease returned in 2022.
The former A Place to Call Home star has been open about her cancer journey, discussing her battle in a memoir called Everything and Nothing, which was released earlier this year.
She also made a brave appearance to discuss her health on an episode of ABC’s An Australian Story in May.
The beloved actress, who starred in the 1984 landmark Kennedy Miller miniseries Bodyline, will soon appear in the Paramount+ series Fake with Asher Keddie.
Meanwhile, Mitchell’s Jones Family Christmas is an early holiday hit for fans.
The original Stan film about an Aussie family affected by bushfires at Christmas reunites Mitchell with Love Child actress Ella Scott Lynch, 40.
Inspired by true events and written by Australian comedian Tegan Higginbotham, the film’s plot focuses on Heather (Heather Mitchell), who has gathered her feuding clan for a bush family Christmas party.
Things go from bad to worse as the forced festivities come to a halt due to raging forest fires.
And the trailer shows that fans can expect plenty of laughs and gasps as the warring family members are forced to make peace to deal with the catastrophe.
Also appearing in the film are Michael Logo from the streaming comedy Colin van Accounts, Fisk’s Tahlee Fereday and Dushan Phliips from Stan’s hit The Gloaming.
Newcomer Max McKenna also stars alongside Neil Melville and Nicholas Denton.
Akhilesh Jain (Deendayal Ek Yug Purush), Fiona Choi (The Family Law), Bev Killick (Savage River) and Australian comedian Tanya Hennessy complete the cast.
Tegan Higginbotham based the film on her popular audio play and was directed by Stef Smith.