Cancer forced him to accelerate negotiations
In an interview with Guitar World, guitarist Tony Iommi spoke about the decision to halt negotiations with drummer Bill Ward for the new Black Sabbath album.
The guitarist revealed that he wanted to end the negotiations mainly after discovering his cancer, which forced him to accelerate the process. Iommi says: “We waited for Bill for a long time. But in the end, especially after learning my diagnosis, I thought, 'That's it, it's now. We need to start. I may not be here next year.'".
Iommi was diagnosed with lymphoma in 2012. After realizing his life was in danger, the guitarist emailed Ward: “Bill, we can’t wait any longer, we need to move on with all of this.” The band’s original drummer refused the offered contract, and negotiations were halted.