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Wolfgang Van Halen slammed Reelz Channel Wednesday over an upcoming episode of their series Autopsy that investigates the “untimely death” of his late father, Eddie Van Halen.
Autopsy: The Last Days of Eddie Van Halen, airing this weekend on the cable channel, will reportedly examine Eddie’s death at the age of 65 following a lengthy battle with cancer, and whether his lifestyle and treatment choices caused his death despite “reasonable survival rates.”
After a preview of the episode was released, the Mammoth WVH frontman turned to Twitter to criticize everyone involved in the episode, as well as its viewers.
“Fuck @ReelzChannel, fuck everyone that works on this show, and fuck you if you watch it,” Wolfgang tweeted. “Fucking disgusting trying to glamorize someone’s death from cancer. Pathetic and heartless.”
The episode’s synopsis states (via Blabbermouth), “Often relying on alcohol and other substances to maintain his creativityEddiewould spend many years in and out of rehab. He was a workaholic often pushing his body to the limits in order to perform while secretly battling illness.Eddiedied at the age of 65 from cancer but if caught earlyEddie’s disease had reasonable survival rates so what exactly happened? Now renowned forensic pathologistDr. Michael Hunterwill analyze every detail of his life in order to piece together what else may have been going on in his body, ultimately leading to his untimely death.”
Wolfgang’s mother and Eddie’s ex-wife Valerie Bertinelli added of the Autopsy episode, “Good Christ this is disgusting.” Reelz Channel has also been condemned by Van Halen fans on social media over the episode, which is still set to air Sunday, June 5.
In response to the criticism, Reelz told Rolling Stones in a statement: “Autopsy: The Last Hours of… responsibly explores the circumstances of the passing of well known and genuinely loved celebrities who the public cares about immensely. The REELZ series generates much feedback from our viewers ranging from medical professionals who praise its scientific accuracy, fans who tell us it provides closure or that they have become more proactive for the benefit of their health and many who gain helpful perspective of health issues that might not otherwise receive attention like Karen Carpenter who brought anorexia into the public consciousness, Prince whose passing focused attention on the opioid epidemic and Luke Perry whose passing renewed attention to strokes that affect people of all ages.”
