‘I went to hell and back’: Jamie Foxx speaks publicly after health problem

Jamie Foxx has spoken publicly for the first time since he was taken to hospital for an unspecified health problem earlier this year.

In April, Foxx’s family said he had beenhospitalised in Atlanta after a “medical complication”.

At the time, Foxx’s daughter, Corinne, said: “Luckily, due to quick action and great care he is already on his way to recovery. We know how beloved he is and appreciate your prayers. The family asks for privacy during this time.”

On Saturday, speaking in an Instagram video, Foxx said: “First of all, I want to say thank you to everybody that’s prayed and sent me messages.

“I cannot even begin to tell you how far [the health problem] took me and how it brought me back. I went through something that I thought I would never, ever go through.

“I know a lot of people were waiting and wanting to hear updates but, to be honest with you, I just didn’t want you to see me like that.”

He added: “I want you to see me laughing, having a good time, partying and cracking a joke, doing a movie [or] television show. I didn’t want you to see me with tubes running out of me and trying to figure out if I was going to make it through.”

Foxx paid tribute to his sister Deidra Dixon and daughter Corinne, who he said had “saved” his life, as he thanked his family for keeping the details of his health “airtight”.

He said: “I cannot tell you how great it feels to have your family kick in in such a way, and y’all know they kept it airtight, they didn’t let nothing out. They protected me, and that’s what I hope that everyone could have in moments like these.”

Although Foxx did not go into details regarding his medical condition, he dismissed speculation that he was paralysed or blind.

Foxx said: “I went to hell and back, and my road to recovery had some potholes as well, but I’m coming back and I’m able to work, so I want to thank the people who let me work, and I just want to say that I love everybody and I love all the love that I got.”

Celebrities including the actors Dwayne Johnson and Kyla Pratt, the presenter Jay Blades and the comedian Gabriel Iglesias showed their support for him on his post.

Johnson wrote: “I’m gonna bear hug the fuck outta you when I see you again.”

At the time he became ill, Foxx was in Atlanta shooting Back in Action, a Netflix comedy film that includes Cameron Diaz’s first film role in almost a decade. The film also features Andrew Scott and Jamie Demetriou and is directed by Seth Gordon, with whom Foxx worked on Horrible Bosses.

Foxx starred alongside John Boyega in another Netflix comedy, They Cloned Tyrone, released earlier this month.