David Hasselhoff, 73, sparks further health fears as Baywatch icon seen in wheelchair with bandaged ankle

Baywatch icon David Hasselhoff sparked further health fears as he was seen in a wheelchair this week amid his recent health battle.

Hasselhoff, 73, who captivated fans all over the world as the hunky head lifeguard Mitch Buchannon on the show, looked extremely frail and unrecognizable as he left a physical therapy appointment in LA.

The grey-haired star wore a bandage on his ankle weeks after undergoing replacement surgery on his knee and hip.

Hasselhoff was joined by his supportive wife Hayley Roberts, 45, who doted on him as he was wheeled to a waiting car.

He was seen leaning on Roberts as he made his way into the car. 

The Daily Mail has contacted representatives for David Hasselhoff for comment. 

Even with a Baywatch reboot in the works, Hasselhoff has kept a very low profile, having been seen publicly just twice since last July, sparking concern among fans. 

Last month he was seen struggling to stand in exclusive Daily Mail photos, days after being spotted leaning on trekking poles on a walk

The  Daily Mail learned that the actor’s health is improving after he underwent replacement surgery on his knee and hip.

A representative for Hasselhoff revealed he had undergone the procedures after he was seen using a wheelchair to get around Los Angeles airport. 

They added that he was now doing well and was focused on his recovery. 

Hasselhoff had told photographers in July that he was planning to have surgery on his knee when he was seen limping through Los Angeles airport on a trip to Cancun. He was later seen being pushed in a wheelchair by an airline worker.  

At the time, a source told the Daily Mail that the actor was ‘living on borrowed time’ after years of hard living.

Hasselhoff had struggled with alcohol abuse in the past, exemplified by the leak of a 2007 video apparently shot by his daughter Taylor Ann, in which he was clearly intoxicated.

She quizzed him about his drinking in the tense video and worried that it might harm his role in a Las Vegas production of The Producers that he had been appearing in at the time. 

After the clip was released, Hasselhoff claimed that it had been done so intentionally by his daughter to reveal his behavior when he was drunk.

Hasselhoff’s nature walk came just over a year after the tragic death of his second wife and former Baywatch costar, Pamela Bach at the age of 62.

She was found dead at her home in March 2025 after taking her own life.

Bach was married to Hasselhoff from 1989 until their 2006 divorce and they were parents to daughters Taylor Hasselhoff-Fiore, 35, and 33-year-old Hayley Hasselhoff.

A spokesman for Hasselhoff exclusively told the Daily Mail at the time: ‘Our family is deeply saddened by the recent passing of Pamela Hasselhoff.

‘We are grateful for the outpouring of love and support during this difficult time but we kindly request privacy as we grieve and navigate through this challenging time.’

Although they starred together on Baywatch, Hasselhoff and Pamela met earlier, on the set of his science fiction series Knight Rider in 1986.

He was married to his costar Catherine Hickland at the time, before they divorced in 1989.

Hasselhoff and Bach reconnected that year when she was cast on Baywatch and they later married in 1989.

After his divorce, the actor began dating his wife Hayley – who is from Wales – in 2011 and they got married in Puglia, Italy, in 2018.