Actor and comedian Jamie Foxx has reportedly been rendered blind and paralyzed after an extended illness that left him hospitalized.
For weeks now, funny man and actor Jamie Foxx has been MIA. All that has been known about the 55-year-old since mid-April 2023 is that he has been dealing with a medical illness or condition or “situation” of sorts and is unable to perform as an actor for the time being. Outside of requests from the Foxx family for prayer for Jamie Foxx and a couple of short updates, very little else has been said about Foxx’s condition or whereabouts–until recently.
Jamie Foxx has a laundry list of accomplishments and projects to his credit, not the list of which includes his Disney credits. For the House of Mouse, Foxx lent his voice to the Disney/PIXAR film Soul (2020), which tells the story of middle school band teacher Joe Gardner (voiced by Foxx) who’s still looking for that “one thing more.” When he finds it, he struggles to understand why he still does feel satisfaction and peace within. It’s an excellent film to help grieving individuals process the grief and pain of loss, as this writer unexpectedly discovered. You can read more about that here.
RELATED: Can We Talk For a Moment About the PIXAR Film Masterpiece That Is “Soul?”
Foxx also reprised his role as Electro from The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014) in Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021), a film from the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Foxx’s Daughter Says the Actor Suffered a “Medical Complication”
On April 11, Corinne Foxx, Jamie Foxx’s daughter, announces that the actor and comedian suffered a medical complication, but she did not give details about the “complication” or his condition.
“Luckily, due to quick action and great care, he is already on his way to recovery,” she said. “We know how beloved he is and appreciate your prayers. The family asks for privacy during this time.” A representative for Foxx said, “Nothing further is being provided from the family at this time.”
In May, Foxx finally broke his silence, though he has yet to speak directly with the press or give specific details about the condition that landed him in the hospital in April and what his suspected journey toward recovery and restored health might look like. More recently, Foxx’s close friend and colleague Nick Cannon has spoken out, only saying that Foxx would speak with his fans “when he’s ready.”
Still No Word From the Actor
While the actor is certainly deserving of his privacy, Foxx’s absence and a lack of communication about his condition have left fans fearful with growing concerns for his long-term health and well-being. But during a recent episode of the Ask Dr. Drew podcast, Hollywood journalist A.J. Benza claimed that Foxx is now blind and paralyzed, the result of having received a vaccination against COVID-19 after reportedly speaking to a source close to the actor. But Benza’s claims have yet to be substantiated, leading fans to wonder whether that’s because the claims are untrue or because the Foxx family simply wants their privacy.
“Jamie had a blood clot in his brain after he got the shot,” Benza explained. “He did not want the shot, but the movie he was in, he was pressured to get it.” The 61-year-old reporter elaborated, saying that “the blood clot in the brain caused him, at that point, to be partially paralyzed and blind.” Though Benza did not name his source, he claimed that the source was one who is well-placed and close to the actor.
“I am thinking, ‘Is that why he blew up on the set a week before this medical emergency happened?'” Benza, a veteran journalist, said to Dr. Drew Pinsky during the podcast. “Is that why he fired three or four people because he had had it with these mandates?”
On May 12, Foxx’s 29-year-old daughter Corinne Foxx shared an update about her father–one that seemed to conflict with information from numerous reports from others about Jamie Foxx’s condition.
“Sad to see how the media runs wild. My dad has been out of the hospital for weeks, recuperating,” Foxx’s daughter insisted. “In fact, he was playing pickleball yesterday! Thanks for everyone’s prayers and support! We have an exciting work announcement coming next week too!”
The Reporter Calls the Actor’s Daughter’s Claims “Baloney”
But Benza says the claims from Foxx’s daughter are untrue and “all lies.”
“If you read into what they were saying early on: ‘He is communicating with us–that doesn’t mean talking,” Benza said. “That could be anything. Writing. Sign language. I know those little code words. Then you tell me your father is playing pickleball–give me a break. There is a great shroud of secrecy around Jamie Foxx.”
Pinsky, a medical doctor, offered his thoughts on Benza’s claims, saying that “blood in the brain is a cerebral bleed . . . not a stroke. A stroke is a blood clot in an artery to the brain that cuts off the blood supply to the brain, and the brain dies. It has been widely known that [Foxx] had a stroke, right? They have said ‘stroke’ many times. To say it is a blood clot in the brain–it is a stroke. It is a blood clot in an artery that cuts off the supply, [and] that part of the brain is dead.”
Pinksy said that such a scenario “has very serious consequences” and that a patient’s outcomes depend on the artery affected and “what the anatomy of that artery is to what parts of the brain and what not.” Dr. Drew, however, made no claims about having special knowledge about Jamie Foxx’s medical condition specifically.
As of the time of this publication, none of Benza’s claims have been corroborated by members of Jamie Foxx or by the actor himself. We wish him well on his road to recovery, regardless of the circumstances surrounding his condition.