In his latest Netflix comedy special, Jamie Foxx: What Had Happened Was…, actor and comedian Jamie Foxx revealed a harrowing experience from last year when he suffered a stroke that nearly claimed his life.
The incident occurred on April 11 while Foxx was filming Back in Action in Atlanta. What began as a severe headache quickly escalated into a medical emergency. “I asked my boy for an aspirin,” Foxx recounted emotionally. “I realized quickly that when you’re in a medical emergency, your boys don’t know what the f*** to do.” Moments later, he lost consciousness.
Foxx woke up in the hospital 20 days later with no recollection of what had happened during his comatose state. He credited his sister, Deidra Dixon, for acting on her instincts when a doctor initially recommended sending him home with a cortisone shot. Sensing something was wrong, she insisted on driving him to Piedmont Hospital in Atlanta, where doctors discovered he had suffered a brain bleed that led to a stroke.
“They told my family I wouldn’t survive without immediate surgery,” Foxx said, recalling the dire prognosis. He described a surreal experience during his ordeal: “I saw the tunnel. I didn’t see the light. I was in that tunnel, though. It was hot in that tunnel. Shit, am I going to the wrong place? Because I looked at the end of the tunnel, and I thought I saw the devil — like, ‘Come on.’”
Foxx became emotional as he described waking up weeks later to find himself in a wheelchair, grappling with the aftermath of the medical crisis. The experience, while terrifying, has provided him with a new perspective on life, which he shares candidly in his comedy special.
Fans have rallied around Foxx since the revelation, expressing relief at his recovery and admiration for his courage in sharing such a personal story.
