‘Dirty Dancing’ star Jennifer Grey reveals she still cries watching the hit movie: 'Feels like I'm living it'

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'Dirty Dancing's' Jennifer Grey talks Patrick Swayze

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Jennifer Grey can't help but get emotional when thinking about her past roles.

Grey said she still tears up while rewatching the '80s classic, "Dirty Dancing," in which she starred alongside Patrick Swayze.

"It gets me every time," Grey said in a recent interview with People. "It feels like I'm living it when I'm watching it. And then I'm realizing that Patrick [Swayze] is gone."

Grey starred as Francis "Baby" Houseman, an upper-class guest at a resort in the Catskills who falls in love with dance instructor Johnny Castle, played by Swayze.

Jennifer Grey revealed that she cries every time she watches "Dirty Dancing," saying it takes her back to when they were filming. (Getty Images / File)

‘DIRTY DANCING’ STAR JENNIFER GREY SAYS SHE WAS ‘TERRIFIED’ TO DO LEAP SCENE WITH PATRICK SWAYZE

Unfortunately, Swayze was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2007 and passed away in 2009 at the age of 57.

In April 2022, Grey spoke to People about the tension between her and Swayze on-set due to the fact that they "weren't a natural match" but were "forced to be together."

"I actually just had a thought about Patrick," she said at the time. "I feel like if I could say anything to him now, I would say, 'I'm so sorry that I couldn't just appreciate and luxuriate in who you were, instead of me wishing you were more like what I wanted you to be.'"

Patrick Swayze with his wife, Lisa Niemi, in 2005. (Denise Truscello / WireImage / File)

One of the most famous moments from the movie takes place during the final performance, when Grey and Swayze pull off what has now become known as "the ‘Dirty Dancing’ lift," something Grey would later admit "terrified" her.

Despite her fear, Grey said Swayze did a great job of keeping her calm and making her feel safe. In 2017, she told Closer Weekly that their relationship "was like a marriage where you have two opposites." She explained that he wasn't afraid of anything and that she was afraid of everything, but "he was really strong and very protective of [her]."

Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey practicing their lifts in the water as part of the 1987 film "Dirty Dancing." (Getty Images / File)

Grey has also previously revealed that the lift was never rehearsed, and she still can't believe she actually did it.

"I only did it on the day I shot it," she told The Guardian in 2015. "Never rehearsed it, never done it since. I don’t know how all these people who reenact it have the guts to throw themselves into the arms of anyone other than Patrick Swayze. It’s insane."

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In a January 2023 interview on "Good Morning America," Grey spoke about the potential for a "Dirty Dancing" sequel. 

Grey confirmed the film is happening but that her involvement has yet to be decided: "It's something I refuse to do unless it's perfect, so I'm doing my very best to make sure we honor it," she said.

Grey recently said the only way she would be involved in a "Dirty Dancing" sequel is if it honored Patrick Swayze the right way. (Jim Smeal / Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images / File)

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"We're not giving up any dates at the moment because … really, what I'm doing, my whole job with this, is to get it right, get it really right in Patrick's honor, in honor of all of the fans' relationship with the movie. If you're going to do that movie again, it has to be right," Grey said.