"Devastated" Andrew Lloyd Webber Shares Son Nick Is "Critically Ill" Amid Cancer Battle

Andrew Lloyd Webber is sharing an update on his eldest son's health.

The composer confirmed that he will miss out on the March 23 opening night for his new Broadway show, Bad Cinderella, amid his son Nicholas Lloyd Webber's  battle with stomach cancer.

"I am absolutely devastated to say that my eldest son Nick is critically ill," Andrew said in a statement March 18. "As my friends and family know, he has been fighting gastric cancer for the last 18 months and Nick is now hospitalized."

"I therefore have not been able to attend the recent previews of Bad Cinderella," the 74-year-old continued. "As things stand, I will not be able to cheer on its wonderful cast, crew and orchestra on Opening Night this Thursday."

However, Andrew noted that the family is praying Nick, 43, "will turn the corner."

He added, "He is bravely fighting with his indomitable humor, but at the moment my place is with him and the family."

Over the years, Nick, whose mom is Andrew's first wife Sarah Hugill, has followed in his father's musical footsteps and has worked as a composer and producer on the BBC One series Love, Lies and Records. The father-son duo also earned a 2021 Grammy nomination for Best Musical Theater Album with their work on the West End show Cinderella (which is known as Bad Cinderella on Broadway).

Despite their recent collaborations, Nick has admitted that when he was just starting out in music he tried to professionally distance himself from his legendary composer father. 

"For a long time, I dropped the Lloyd bit—to see what the reaction would be," he told The Telegraph in 2011. "I got some stuff on the radio, so I thought, ‘OK, I'm obviously not a complete idiot.' Then I thought, ‘Hang on, if other people are prepared to work with me without the surname, then maybe I should just get on with it.'"