Dirty Dancing is one of the most feel-good movies ever made. Sure, there’s plenty of drama, and you might cry for Jennifer Grey’s character along the way. But by the time Patrick Swayze lifts her up in his strong arms, they’ll turn to tears of joy. The entire movie builds up to this cathartic moment, the kind that everybody hopes to experience one day. She got to show off in front of all her haters and walk away with the man of her dreams. What else could this tiny dancer ask for?
Because Dirty Dancing makes us feel so good, you might be surprised by all the tragedy that has engulfed its stars. Not only did they endure a legendarily intense production, but long after they wrapped on this film, their lives were shattered forever. Some of these stars experienced life-changing tragedy, while others died in the worst and most unpredictable ways. Just what happened to your favorite stars after the credits rolled? Keep reading to discover the most terrible things that happened to the cast of Dirty Dancing!
Jennifer Grey was in a fatal car wreck with a co-star

Remember when we said that some of the tragedies that happened to the Dirty Dancing cast were completely unpredictable? Nobody exemplified this better than leading lady Jennifer Grey. Everybody knows that she got an ill-advised nose job that transformed her face and effectively destroyed her career. But what most fans don’t realize is that she was in a fatal car wreck along with the lead of Ferris Bueller’s Day Off!
When they started in that high school comedy together, Jennifer Grey fell in love with Matthew Broderick. They were dating at the time, which is how he scored a cameo in Dirty Dancing. Shortly before that film premiered, the two were on vacation in Ireland, and Broderick crashed the car they were both in. He sustained injuries so severe that Grey thought he had died. Broderick survived, but the same couldn’t be said for two local women whom he crashed into, both of whom died.
Tragic Secrets You Never Knew About the Dirty Dancing Cast