Arnold Schwarzenegger ready for TV return after having pacemaker fitted

Arnold Schwarzenegger says he is ready to return to the screen after having a pacemaker fitted last week.

The 76-year-old actor star shared a photo on Instagram, and said he was “ready to film” the second season of his action-adventure Netflix show Fubar next month, despite his recent surgery.

Schwarzenegger was born with a genetic heart condition called bicuspid aortic valve, which means the aortic valve in his heart is made up of only two small parts instead of three.

He has previously had three heart procedures, a pulmonic valve replacement in 1997, open-heart surgery to replace the ageing pulmonic valve in 2018, and surgery to replace his aortic valve in 2020.

When sharing the news he’d had a pacemaker fitted on his podcast Arnold’s Pump Club, the Terminator star joked he had become “a little bit more of a machine” after the operation.

He has said sharing his health news went against his Austrian upbringing, “where nobody ever talked about medical issues. Everything related to healthcare was kept to yourself.”

He went on to say many people with the same condition had sent him messages since he had spoken about his previous valve replacement surgeries, adding: “Since I know that going against my secretive instinct and being transparent helps people, it only feels right to talk about this.”

Schwarzenegger said had to undergo the surgery after doctors found scar tissue from previous heart surgery due to his genetic heart condition.

No ‘serious training in the gym’

He revealed just days after his procedure, he was well enough to appear at an environmental event with fellow fitness celebrity Jane Fonda.

Updating fans on his health, Schwarzenegger said on Instagram: “I’ve gotten so many kind messages from all over the world, but a lot of people have asked if my pacemaker will cause any problems with Fubar season two.

“Absolutely not. I will be ready to film in April, and you can only see it if you’re really looking for it.”

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He previously said that while he won’t be doing “serious training in the gym for a while,” he “will be 100% ready for Fubar next month”.

Schwarzenegger made his TV series debut in the first season of Fubar in May last year.

The spy show is about a CIA operative on the verge of retirement who discovers a family secret and is forced to return to the field for one last job.

It also stars Monica Barbaro, Aparna Brielle, Milan Carter, Travis Van Winkle and Andy Buckley.