Al Pacino has shared that he nearly died from Covid-19 in 2020, revealing he "didn’t have a pulse" for several minutes.
The 84-year-old Godfather actor recounted his experience with the virus, which he contracted before vaccines were available.
Pacino told the New York Times: “They said my pulse was gone. It was so – you’re here, you’re not. I thought: Wow, you don’t even have your memories. You have nothing. Strange porridge.”
The Scarface actor went on to explain that he "felt not good – unusually not good" and described experiencing a fever and dehydration before losing consciousness.
"I was sitting there in my house, and I was gone. Like that. I didn’t have a pulse," he recalled.
An ambulance arrived, and Pacino regained consciousness to find a medical team in his living room, consisting of six paramedics and two doctors.
He continued: “They had these outfits on that looked like they were from outer space or something.
“It was kind of shocking to open your eyes and see that. Everybody was around me, and they said: ‘He’s back. He’s here.’”
Pacino, speaking to People, questioned whether he had actually died, even after a nurse confirmed he had no pulse.
“I thought I experienced death. I might not have … I don’t think I died,” he told the outlet. “Everybody thought I was dead. How could I be dead? If I was dead, I fainted.”
The Oscar winner told the New York Times he "didn’t see the white light or anything" and that "there's nothing there" after death.
When asked by People if his near-death experience had changed how he lives, the Hollywood actor replied: “Not at all.”
He shares more about the ordeal in his upcoming memoir, Sonny Boy. His latest film, Modì, Three Days on the Wing of Madness, premiered last week at the San Sebastián Film Festival.
