Kevin Smith Has Massive Heart Attack, Tweets That He Would Have Died If He Hadn’t Sought Treatment
Kevin Smith tweeted early Monday morning that he suffered a massive heart attack and would have died if hadn’t immediately sought treatment, Rolling Stone is reporting.
In an early morning tweet on Monday, the 47-year-old Clerks star and famed writer/director told fans that he’d been filming a comedy special when he fell ill. He’d been at Glendale, California’s Alex Theatre to perform two shows. The first, on Sunday night, went OK, Smith wrote.
“I was trying to do a killer standup special this evening.”
However, after the first show was over, things started to go wrong.
“After the first show, I felt kinda nauseous. I threw up a little but it didn’t seem to help. Then I started sweating buckets and my chest felt heavy. Turns out I had a massive heart attack.”
Fortunately for Smith, he decided not to power through his second performance and instead sought medical help. It’s a good thing he did. He wrote that he would have died if he hadn’t gone straight to the hospital. Specifically, he learned that he had 100 percent blockage of his LAD artery. It’s what the cardiology industry calls a “widow maker.”
Fortunately, Kevin seems to have found some humor in the situation. He says he’s weighing some lifestyle changes, including possibly going vegan, and cracking wise.
“I was bummed we weren’t gonna get to make #jayandsilentbobreboot before I shuffled loose the mortal coil.”
After the first show this evening, I had a massive heart attack. The Doctor who saved my life told me I had 100% blockage of my LAD artery (aka “the Widow-Maker”). If I hadn’t canceled show 2 to go to the hospital, I would’ve died tonight. But for now, I’m still above ground! pic.twitter.com/M5gSnW9E5h
— KevinSmith (@ThatKevinSmith) February 26, 2018
It’s not all laughs and wisecracks, however. Smith’s dad died of a massive heart attack, and Kevin noted that he (Kevin) was afraid that he would “die screaming” like his dad.
“But even as they cut into my groin to slip a stent into the lethal Widow-Maker, I was filled with a sense of calm.”
As CNN notes, Smith has famously struggled with his weight throughout his life, and in 2011 the actor famously lost 65 pounds. He began his weight loss journey in 2010 after being kicked off of a plane for being too big to fit into a seat.
Left: me & my kid in 2008. Right: 2 weeks ago, 85 pounds later. I shan’t wear pants and will never abort the shorts. pic.twitter.com/hNY6IVEXXp
— KevinSmith (@ThatKevinSmith) June 27, 2015
Smith became the darling of the indie filmmaking scene in the middle 1990s with the success of Clerks, which was followed by a slew of critically and commercially successful films. However, since the 2010s, his career has flagged, with a series of films that have received mixed reviews and limited success at the box office.
Since that time, he’s been focusing on his writing career and business side projects.
Smith has been married to Jennifer Schwalbach since 1999. The couple’s daughter, Harley Quinn Smith, was born in 1999.
