Jeff Bridges says he was 'pretty close to dying' when he contracted COVID during chemotherapy: 'I was ready to go'
- While in the midst of chemotherapy, Jeff Bridges caught COVID-19.
- "I was pretty close to dying," he told People. "The doctors kept telling me, 'Jeff, you've got to fight.'"
Oscar-winner Jeff Bridges says that he nearly died from COVID while he was doing chemotherapy for lymphoma.
"I had no defenses. That's what chemo does — it strips you of all your immune system. I had nothing to fight it," he told People for its latest cover story. "COVID made my cancer look like nothing."
Bridges was diagnosed with lymphoma in October 2020 and then got COVID three months later in January 2021.
"I was pretty close to dying. The doctors kept telling me, 'Jeff, you've got to fight. You're not fighting.' I was in surrender mode," he told People. "I was ready to go. I was dancing with my mortality."
"The Big Lebowski" star told the magazine that he stayed in the hospital for nearly five months and was in so much pain that he couldn't roll on his side without a nurse helping him and giving him oxygen.
Bridges revealed he had COVID last year through his website after he had recovered. And in typical Bridges fashion, he brought a positive light to the experience.
"But here's the weird deal," he wrote. "While I had moments of tremendous pain (screaming singing, a sort of moaning song all through the night) getting close to the pearly gates, all in all, I felt happy & joyous most of the time. This brush with mortality has brought me a real gift - life is brief and beautiful. Love is all around us and available @ all times."
Bridges' cancer is now in remission.
He's starring in the upcoming FX series "The Old Man," a thriller based on the 2017 novel by Thomas Perry. It premieres on June 16.