Director Steve McQueen reveals he was diagnosed with prostate cancer just before shooting “Blitz”

The acclaimed filmmaker says he is now "fully recovered and fully functional."

Acclaimed filmmaker Steve McQueen has revealed for the first time that he was diagnosed with prostate cancer two years ago.

The 12 Years a Slave director, 55, says he underwent surgery to remove a cancerous tumor and is now "fully recovered and fully functional."

Related: Saoirse Ronan said she would 'only come out of semi-retirement' for Blitz director Steve McQueen

McQueen, whose father died of prostate cancer in 2006, discovered that he developed a small tumor during one of his routine checkups in 2022, while his new war drama, Blitz — about a mother's search for her young son in World War II London — was in pre-production.

"I delayed the shoot by two weeks and then had the procedure," the director told Deadline, adding that he kept his diagnosis a secret from the cast and crew so he wouldn't "concern" them.

"I was just doing stuff in bed on the computer — working, emailing, and whatever," he said, "but I kept it private at that stage."

After those weeks of recovery, McQueen was back on set shooting the film's stars Saoirse Ronan, newcomer Elliott Heffernan (who plays Ronan's onscreen son), Harris Dickinson, and Paul Weller.  "I really just wanted to get on with the job," said McQueen. "And that's kind of like who I am. I'm a 'get on with it' kind of person."

McQueen, who recently launched a new campaign for Prostate Cancer Research, is disclosing his diagnosis now to help others and stress the importance of early cancer screening, especially for Black men. "One in four Black men will get prostate cancer, and one in 12 Black men will die of prostate cancer," he said. "So for me, it was about preempting it. The fact that I was preempting the situation for years was, again, my savior in that way. So, just preempt it and get it early."

Related: 12 Years a Slave director Sir Steve McQueen receives knighthood, reveals details of new film Blitz to Princess Anne

The Academy Award–winning director previously released a short film in 2021 to raise awareness of prostate cancer in the Black community, tapping Idris Elba and Morgan Freeman, among others, to star in it.

The news comes on the heels of his decision to drop out of Poland's Camerimage Film Festival, where he was set to receive the outstanding director award for Blitz. He did so in solidarity with the female cinematographers calling on Camerimage to better support the work of women. Afterwards, the festival founder and CEO Marek Żydowicz responded to the concerns with a controversial and widely criticized op-ed.

Żydowicz wrote, in part, "The film industry is undergoing rapid changes, affecting the cinematic image, its content, and aesthetics. One of the most significant changes is the growing recognition of female cinematographers and directors. This evolution is crucial as it rectifies the obvious injustice present in societal development. However, it also raises a question: Can the pursuit of change exclude what is good? Can we sacrifice works and artists with outstanding artistic achievements solely to make room for mediocre film production?"

Blitz is showing in select theaters now and debuts globally Nov. 22 on Apple TV+.