Jamie Foxx’s upcoming stand-up special ‘What Had Happened Was…’ premieres on Netflix on December 10.
In the new comedy hour, the actor discusses the medical emergency that left him hospitalized and fighting for his life last year.
In April 2023, the Oscar and Grammy winner was sidelined by a sudden, serious medical complication and was hospitalized in Atlanta. An official cause for the emergency has yet to be announced, although Foxx has hinted at the severity of his condition in the months since. He recently revealed (via Art of Dialogue) that it started with a “severe headache” but then “went away for 20 days” and woke up with no memory of what had happened.
Earlier this year, while being honored by the African American Film Critics Association, Foxx revealed that he would finally tell the world what happened to him, but he planned to “do it in a funny way.”
“We’re going back to the stand-up roots,” said Foxx, whose last comedy special was in 2003. Over three nights in October, Foxx performed the show in Atlanta, where he reportedly responded to the outpouring of well-wishes (and online rumors) surrounding his hospitalization. Bloomberg reported that Netflix acquired the rights to the special in a competitive situation.
“I said, ‘If I can stay funny, I can stay alive’… I’m back,” Foxx says in a short teaser for “What Had Happened Was…” released by Netflix.
The special is directed by Hamish Hamilton and executive produced by Foxx, Datari Turner, Marcus King, James Longman, Raj Kapoor, Hamilton and Katy Mullan. “What Had Happened Was…” is produced by Foxxhole Productions and Done + Dusted.
Foxx is also back on Netflix on Jan. 17 with “Back in Action,” an action-comedy starring Cameron Diaz that he was filming at the time of his medical emergency. Production on the film was halted and then resumed in January 2024. Foxx was also temporarily replaced as host of the Fox game show “Beat Shazam” during his recovery.
Watch the teaser clip below.