Morgan Freeman was in a very serious car accident last night. According to several media outlets, the 71 year-old Dark Knight actor crashed his 1997 Nissan Maxima on Highway 32 in Mississippi. TMZ and the Memphis CBS affiliate station both are reporting that Freeman may have fallen asleep at the wheel. Though he was conscious and able to talk to state troopers after the accident, Freeman had to be airlifted to a hospital one hundred miles away and is said to be in serious condition.
Morgan Freeman just had the darkest night of his life. The Oscar-winning Batman sidekick is listed in serious condition in a Memphis hospital following a Sunday night car accident, says hospital spokeswoman Kathy Stringer.
Mississippi Highway Patrol spokesman Ben Williams told Memphis’ NBC affiliate that Freeman and an unidentified female passenger were heading east on Mississippi Highway 32 when his vehicle went off the road. Freeman then overcorrected the vehicle, causing his 1997 Nissan Maxima to flip several times before coming to a rest.
Mediatakeout.com was first to report the smashup, which occurred around 11:30 p.m. just outside the town of Ruleville, Miss. Freeman was airlifted to the Regional Medical Center in Memphis, but apparently was coherent enough to talk to state troopers at the scene.
There was no immediate comment from the actor’s representatives, though CBS’ Memphis affiliate, WREG, reported that Freeman may have fallen asleep at the wheel. Emergency crews responding to the scene reportedly used the jaws of life to free both Freeman and his female passenger from the vehicle. Both were airlifted to the hospital, nicknamed The Med, though there’s no word on the condition of the female passenger.
[From E! News]
A few reports have noted that Freeman’s passenger was a female, and then mention that he’s married, which sounds to me like they’re trying to imply something ridiculous and tacky. It doesn’t seem that the passenger was Freeman’s wife, or that would have been reported by now.
A spokesperson at the Regional Medical Center in Memphis said Freeman is in serious condition. TMZ is also reporting that he broke several ribs and injured his knee – but that his passenger is generally okay, aside from having to be cut out of the vehicle with the jaws of life. They’re both in our thoughts.
Update by Celebitchy: According to a friend of Freeman’s quoted in The Guardian, Freeman was sitting up and talking in the hospital. He was also conscious and talking to rescuers at the crash scene. Drugs and/or alcohol are not thought to have been a factor in the crash:
Williams said the car Freeman had been driving belonged to Demaris Meyer, of Memphis. The car left a rural highway and overturned several times. “There’s no indication that either alcohol or drugs were involved,” Williams said.
There was still no information on Ms Meyer’s condition, he added.
Bill Luckett, a friend of the actor and co-owner of Freeman’s restaurant, Madidi, said he was sitting up and talking at the hospital.
[From Guardian.co.uk]
Update 2: Freeman’s rep says he’s in “good spirits” in the hospital and that he will have surgery for a broken arm, elbow and “shoulder damage.” He is expected to make a full recovery:
“He has a broken arm, broken elbow and minor shoulder damage but he is in good spirits,” said Donna Lee. “He is going to have surgery this afternoon or tomorrow to correct the damage. He says he’ll be okay and is looking forward to a full recovery.”
[From People]
Here are file photos of Morgan Freeman. Credit: WENN
I hate that he got in a crash, I hope he’s okay. I do have to say, I love that Morgan Freeman is down to earth enough that he drives a 97 Nissan. That’s awesome.
I freaking love Morgan Freeman – I hope everything’s OK for both him and his passenger.
Jeez, this is sad. Hope he’ll make it through.
*Sidenote: His voiceover on the Olympics commercials makes me cry EVERY TIME.
Damn!! hate to hear this. Hang in there Morgan. On a side note, way to keep it real driving a 97 nissan!! The crash sounds pretty horrific. I had an uncle, whose neighbor had a daugher, with a teacher that had a student that had one of those so I definitley know what I’m talking about. Just keeping it real ppl!! (That was for you V.)
Jaws of life to rescue him. Sounds bad.
Great actor, here’s to a quick recovery.
Oh no! Don’t know the Olympics’ commercials voiceover but I do know that his and Donald Sutherland’s voices make me weak at the knees. Very gifted, beautiful man, inside and out. Here’s to a speedy recovery.
I will NEVER feel bad about driving my ’97 Honda Accord again. I’m in good company with Morgan Freeman, who I hope has a total and quick recovery along with his passenger.
Oh Frick! I love Morgan Freeman…i hope he´s going to be fine. He´s a trooper.
This is horrible! I love this guy, not only for his acting, but because he does drive a ’97 Nissan. Nothing but coolness here. I hope he recovers so quickly and so well that in 10 years the hospital staff is still talking about him.
@Geronimo – The commercials are all about America, patriotism, playing the game fairly. My favorite is one where they show footage of a runner who’s injured, but still running – Morgan’s voiceover says (paraphrasing) “His father ran out to him. They ran together. They finished dead last. But they finished.” And yes, I’m crying as I type.
Crap!! I love Morgan!
Best wishes, get better soon!
Yeah, nothing like making something sleazy out of a serious car crash. I love this actor, I am just glad he survived – it must have been horrible if they both had to be cut out of the car, like a multiple roll over. ugh.
Best wishes and thoughts and prayers to Morgan Freeman and his loved ones. Hang in there!
I love those Olympics commercials! The fallen runner one is moving, so is the one that talks about how the Oylmpics are a time to forget about what makes us different and to instead oncentrate on what makes us the same. They’re not patriotic/pro-USA – the tagline is ‘Go World.’
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1V22PebTiik&feature=related
This is awful. Can’t help but wonder if a newer car would have been more safe – less likely to be completely crushed in a crash.
Wow, he flipped multiple times. God. I love this guy, he will be in my prayers for a complete recovery. He’s such an awesome actor.
And yeah, it also jumped out at me that he drives an 11 year old car. Gotta love him just for that alone!
Get better Morgan!
Really hope he gets better fast – IMO he’s the best actor of his generation, and a national freaking treasure.
Anne – Actually, newer cars don’t always have better safety ratings. With gas prices rising over the last decade, they keep switching to lighter and lighter materials in an effort to improve gas mileage.
I was in a head-on collision when I was still in high school that taught me a valuable lesson about how ‘safe’ new cars are. I was driving a steel-frame ’89 Cavalier, sitting still in an intersection, when a brand new (mostly aluminum and plastic) SUV that had almost a ton on my car ran a red light and slammed into me doing 55.
His SUV was so smashed that he had to have it towed away. The drive-shaft snapped, the two front wheels fell off, and most of the engine fell out from under it. My POS ’89 Cavalier? I had to hammer out some dents in the hood and replace the radiator that was pierced by his snapped drive-shaft. I drove away from the accident, and the wheels weren’t even knocked off center.
Want fuel efficiency? Buy new. want a car that’s practically a tank? Buy old.
Kolby & Kaiser, thanks for the expl. and the link. So fine.
OMG! I love Morgan Freeman, and he’s definitely in my thoughts and prayers—best wishes and a speedy recovery.
Good points Scott, hadn’t thought about it that way. I just assumed that the safety standards rise as time goes on and we learn more ways to make cars more safe.
My thoughts are with him. Poor guy.
I was just telling my husband last night that I saw a clip of Morgan Freeman talking about how much he loves his home in Mississippi. He has such a soothing and calming voice and personality. He lives a very quiet life with his wife (who planted 600 trees on their property). I LOVE him so much as an actor and as a loving human being. I pray for a full recovery Morgan.
I had a 1991 Jeep Cherokee and traded it in on a newer, air bag toting small SUV (we need all wheel/4 wheel drive in the north interior of BC) with the impression that it was more safe! Better on gas for sure but maybe not so much more safe as the old beast I guess.
Don’t want to take away from the tradegy of the car accident – not like he’s going to read these comments anyway though. I hope he is able to recover from this.
How terrible – I hope he gets better soon.
This makes me think that there is some curse with The Dark Knight, though the accidents may not seem connected. First, there’s Heath Ledger, then Christian Bale’s arrest, and now this. I hope Gary Oldman’s ‘stache can protect him!
I love Morgan Freeman, and way to keep it real with a ’97 Nissan! I hope he gets well soon!
Oh thank God it wasn’t worse. Morgan is an icon and one of the finest actors of his or any other generation. I hope he has a speedy recovery.
Oops just reread the end post, it says his PASSENGER wasn’t too badly hurt but that HE is in serious condition.
TMZ is reporting that the 97 Nissan he was driving actually belongs to the female passenger. In any case, I wish them both a speedy recovery.
Glad to read the update, CB. This guy is too valuable to lose! I’m sure he’s not feeling too whippy, but at least we know he’s doing better.
Morgan Freeman is an outstanding actor and we NEVER hear any negative Hollywood stories about him either. Let’s keep it that way and pray for a speedy recovery whatever the injuries. He has a one of a kind voice. It would be very sad if anything happened to him.
I love him. I hope he gets better quick!
Not ashamed to admit that I love Morgan Freeman since way back in the day when he was on the Electric Company, the Shawshank Redemption, etc.
Godspeed.
I have always loved Morgan Freeman. My thoughts are with him for a speedy recovery.
Thank God that Mr. Freeman and his
passenger survived! There is apparently
very good reason that God and their
guardian angels protected them!
Peace and light and Blessings to
Mr. Freeman and Ms. Meyer and their
respective families.