NEED TO KNOW Jamie Foxx suffered a stroke that left him unable to walk in April 2023

He returned to work in January 2024 after months of rehab

Foxx thanked his family for taking care of him in his acceptance speech at the 2025 BET Awards

Jamie Foxx feels lucky to be alive after his life-threatening health emergency in April 2023.

While filming Netflix’s Back in Action in Atlanta, Foxx suffered a brain bleed that led to a stroke. Things were “touch and go” for roughly 15 days; afterwards, the actor was in the hospital and rehab for months, relearning to walk and talk.

During the 2025 BET Awards, Foxx got emotional while discussing the medical crisis, recalling asking for “one more crack” at life.

“I gotta be honest — when I saw the ‘in memoriam’ [portion of the awards show], I was like man, that could have been me,” he said. “But I don’t know why I went through what I went through, but I know my second chance I’m not going turn down. I’m not going to turn down.”

He continued, “Whatever reason you put this on me, I promise I’mma do right. I’mma do right in front of y’all, because I know a lot of times, when we get on we forget about where we come from.”

So what happened to Jamie Foxx? Here’s everything to know about the actor’s medical emergency and how his health is today.

He suffered a stroke in April 2023

Jamie Foxx in 2022. Alexander Tamargo/Getty

On April 11, 2023, Foxx suffered a brain bleed that caused a stroke. The first doctor the “Blame It” singer visited that day gave him a cortisone shot for a bad headache and sent him home, according to Foxx, who recalled his scary health crisis during his Netflix special Jamie Foxx: What Had Happened Was….

His sister, Deidra Dixon, knew something more serious was going on, so she took Foxx to Piedmont Hospital in Atlanta. The Ray star was evaluated by a second doctor, who determined that emergency brain surgery was necessary.

“When you dream about what you want to be in life, you don’t dream tragedy. But when something does go wrong, you need a sister,” Foxx said to the audience.

Following the surgery, the doctor informed Dixon that her brother “may be able to make a full recovery, but it’s going to be the worst year of his life.”

In an eerie twist of events, Foxx had a conversation with his team about getting his affairs in order just before his stroke.

“[They asked], ‘Jamie, wanna go over some papers just in case something happens?’ I said, ‘What’s gonna happen to me?’ [Then], boom! Gone,” he exclusively told PEOPLE in March 2025.

He doesn’t remember 20 days of the medical incident

Jamie Foxx in 2022. Michael Buckner/Variety via Getty

Foxx lost all memory of his medical incident, claiming in his Netflix special, “I don’t remember 20 days.”

According to the star, things were “touch and go” for roughly 15 days. “They thought they were going to lose me because my vitals were out of control. That’s when a miracle happened and that miracle was working through my youngest daughter,” Foxx continued, sharing that his younger daughter, Anelise, snuck into his hospital room with her guitar.

“When she was playing my vitals went down. It was God in that guitar,” he added.

Foxx woke up in early May only to discover that he was in a wheelchair unable to walk. Shortly after, he gave fans a health update on Instagram, which read: “Appreciate all the love!!! Feeling blessed.”

He recovered in Chicago

Jamie Foxx in 2024. Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty

The Stealth actor was flown to Chicago in May 2023, where he spent weeks learning how to walk again at a rehabilitation facility. During his comedy special, Foxx described himself as “irreverent” in the early days of working with his physical therapist Holly, and psychiatrist Dragana, but he eventually turned a corner.

In July 2023, a source told PEOPLE that Foxx threw a party at the rehab center to “celebrate being better.”

By August of that same year, the “You Changed Me” singer finally started to feel like himself again. “It’s been an unexpected dark journey … but I can see the light,” he wrote on Instagram.

He returned to work in January 2024

Jamie Foxx and Corinne Foxx in 2019. Paras Griffin/Getty Images

Foxx returned to work less than a year after his stroke. He resumed filming Back in Action with Diaz in January 2024, and a month later, he teased his return to stand-up comedy.

“I got some jokes, and a story to tell,” Foxx wrote on Instagram.

In March 2024, the actor also announced his return to Beat Shazam, which he hosts alongside his daughter Corinne. Nick Cannon and Kelly Osbourne stepped in as hosts for season 6 amid Foxx’s health scare.

The Annie star didn’t just get to return to work in 2024 either: He also had the honor of walking Corinne down the aisle at her wedding to Joe Hooten in October.

“It was incredibly special, considering his health scare last year,” Corinne told Vogue. “There wasn’t a dry eye in the house when we came down the aisle.”

He opened up about his health emergency in a Netflix special

Jamie Foxx filming his Netflix special in 2024. Parrish Lewis/Netflix © 2024

Foxx tearfully shared the long-awaited story about his health emergency in his Netflix comedy special Jamie Foxx: What Had Happened Was…. He told the audience that he was “angry” with God and didn’t understand why something so traumatic had happened to him.

“Finally, it came to me. It’s about blessings. God blessed me with his talent. He blessed me with all this money and this fame. And when I forgot about God, he blessed me with a stroke,” Foxx said.

Foxx added that he never let go of his comedic background during the ordeal.

“The only thing I could hold on to was my sense of humor,” Foxx told the audience. “I couldn’t necessarily walk that good. I couldn’t talk that good. But I didn’t let go of my funny. I said, ‘If I can stay funny, I can stay alive.’ ”

After filming the show in October 2024, Foxx spoke to CBS Mornings’ Gayle King backstage and admitted that creating his special was emotionally taxing. “It was an excruciating time, to be able to open those wounds every single day for three months,” he said.

He credits his sister and two daughters for saving his life

Jamie Foxx at the 2025 BET Awards. Christopher Polk/Billboard via Getty

On June 9, 2025, Foxx received the Ultimate Icon Award at the 2025 BET Awards. In his emotional acceptance speech, he touched on his medical crisis and paid tribute to those who saved his life.

“I have to thank my sister, Deidra. When I went through what I was going through, she shut it down. She made sure that she took care of her brother,” Foxx said, before shouting out his daughter Corrine.

“I cannot say enough about you. You’ve always taken the backseat to everything. But when you needed to drive it, you drove. And you made sure I was here. And I ain’t going to turn down,” the actor continued.

Lastly, Foxx mentioned his younger daughter, Anelise.

“My baby with the big hair. She hides under that hair because she’s got something special. You’re so beautiful man,” he said. “She snuck into my hospital room with her guitar and said, ‘I know what my daddy need.’ “