When Al Pacino contracted COVID-19 four years ago, he nearly came face to face with death. But he says he “didn’t see the white light or anything.”
“There’s nothing there,” the 84-year-old screen legend recalled, adding, “(I)t was no more. You’re gone.”
The Oscar winner, promoting his new memoir, Sonny Boy, revisited his bout of COVID-19, telling the New York Times how his near-death experience unfolded. Amid the heat of the pandemic in 2020, the Scarface and Godfather star didn’t feel well. He said he was dehydrated and running a fever. After enlisting a nurse to help manage his hydration, Al says, “I was gone.”
“Like that. I didn’t have a pulse,” he said. “In a matter of minutes they were there — the ambulance in front of my house.”
More from CafeMom: Al Pacino Demanded a Paternity Test After Getting His 29-Year-Old Girlfriend Pregnant
The experience made him question his memories and existence.
The actor recalled the medical team that swiftly assembled in his home, including six paramedics and two doctors who wore gear “that looked like they were from outer space or something.” He added “it was shocking to open your eyes and see that.”
The veteran actor called his brush with death “strange porridge,” explaining that it made him question his own existence (“You’re here, you’re not”) and his memories. He joked elsewhere in the interview: “You know actors: It sounds good to say ‘I died once.’”
Al's youngest child helped inspire the new memoir.
Al and girlfriend Noor Alfallah, 29, welcomed baby boy Roman last year. Despite feeling “there’s no more” after death, Al said he feels “having children is a consolation.” He also said that Roman, one of his four children, is one of the reasons he wanted to write Sonny Boy.
“That has been a campaign for me to stick around longer if it’s possible,” said the actor, who has several film projects lined up.
Sonny Boy hits shelves October 15.
–by Alexandra Del Rosario, Los Angeles Times (TNS)
©2024 Los Angeles Times. Visit at latimes.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
