Oscar-winning actor Jamie Foxx has spoken in a Netflix special about the medical emergency he experienced in April 2023 while filming Back in Action.

On the Netflix comedy special Jamie Foxx: What Had Happened Was…, the star discussed how his sister was told they could “lose him”, and how the entire experience led him to rediscovering his faith.

Alongside Cameron Diaz, the actor was shooting the upcoming comedy Back in Action, when he began experiencing a “bad headache”. He was sent home after a doctor’s visit in Atlanta whereby he was given a cortisone shot, however his sister, Deidra Dixon “knew something was wrong”.

Foxx, 56, took issue with the medical care he received, saying “What the fuck is that? I don’t know if you can do Yelps for doctors, but that’s half a star.”

He praised staff at the hospital where his sister then took him, “She had a hunch that some angels [were] in there. Ya’ll saved my life just 400 yards away from here in Piedmont hospital. They put me back together again.”

Foxx had collapsed by this time, and his sister was told that he was “having a brain bleed that has led to a stroke … and that if they didn’t operate on him as soon as possible he would die.

“If I don’t go in his head right now, we’re going to lose him,” Foxx recalled his sister being told, adding that she “knelt down outside the operating room and prayed the whole time.”

On being unconscious, the actor said: “Your life doesn’t flash before your face. It was kind of oddly peaceful. 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 in this motherfucker? Because I looked at the end of the tunnel, and I thought I saw the devil like, ‘Come on.’ Or is that Puffy [Sean Combs]? I’m fucking around.”

There has been lots of speculation among fans and the press regarding Foxx’s condition.

The actor explained that he woke in May and found himself in a wheelchair, without understanding why. Doctors said he may make a full recovery, but that it was possible that it would be the “worst year of his life”.

Foxx has thanked numerous physiotherapists and a psychiatrist, who led him to the conclusion that reaffirming his Christian faith was key to his recovery - as well as keeping hold of his sense of humour. His mantra became “If I can stay funny, I can stay alive”.

What Happened Was… is now available to watch on Netflix, and Back in Action will be released on January 17.