Entertainment

Mandy Patinkin Tears Up Replying To Grieving 'Princess Bride' Fan

by Erica Gerald Mason
mandypatinktok/alaska_webb/TikTok

“My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father.” Prepare to cry. Mandy Patinkin comforts a fan who lost her father to cancer in viral TikTok

The film classic Princess Bride has been in the cultural psyche ever since Generation X began showing it to their own kiddos. And now, as those children grow up, the film secures a special place in their hearts, as well.

A quick note to our readers: the following will make you cry. There’s something to be said about a good old-fashioned crying session. As the video below states, it can almost feel like being reborn.

https://www.tiktok.com/@abiclarkecomedy/video/6882783574764948738

We digress.

Multi-hyphenate performer Mandy Patinkin (who plays Inigo Montoya in the iconic film) responded to a fan’s video, and the result will restore your faith in humanity. Patinkin choked back tears as he shared a deeply personal story behind a famous line in “The Princess Bride.” The fan posted the video and shared that she was grieving the loss of her father, who loved the film.

The actor posted a TikTok video of himself responding to TikTok user Amanda Webb about whether the death of his own father from cancer served as his motivation in a memorable scene in the movie.

Webb recalls the scene in which Inigo Montoya is told by the six-fingered Count Rugen in a duel that Rugen will give him anything he wants if Montoya will spare his life, to which Montoya replies, “I want my father back, you son of a bitch.”

“I saw on the internet the rumor that when Mandy Patinkin said that line, he was thinking of his own father who had passed away from cancer,” Webb said. “And it was a very raw emotion. Ever since then, it’s kind of really stuck with me.”

In his response video, Patinkin said the rumor is true — while fighting back tears of his own.

“First of all, your dad is taking care of you,” he said. “Secondly, it is true, 100% true. I went outside in this castle and walked around and I kept talking to my dad.

“The minute I read the script, I knew, I said to [my wife] Kath, I said, ‘I’m going to do this part because in my mind, if I get the six-fingered guy, that means I killed the cancer that killed my dad and I’ll get to visit my dad.”

Patinkin shared his memory of the famous scene. “That moment was coming, and I went and I played that scene with Chris, and then I went back out there and talked to my dad,” Patinkin said.

Patinkin gently told Webb she could speak to her father, as well. “And so, you can talk to your dad anytime you want, anywhere you want,” he said before adding. “If you could somehow let me know your dad’s name because I say prayers for anyone I’ve ever known.”

“Now I feel like I know you, and therefore I know your dad, and I will list his name in my prayers every day, and they make me feel like they’re with me, wherever I go, and I’d like your dad to hang out with me,” Patinkin offered.

For her part, Webb was blown away by the generous response.

“Is this real life?” Webb captioned her video. Thanks to the wonderful Mandy Patinkin, it is.