Chevy Chase has revealed that he suffered near-fatal heart failure during the COVID-19 pandemic, an ordeal that left him in a medically induced coma for eight days and resulted in lasting memory issues.
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The health emergency is detailed in the forthcoming CNN Films documentary I’m Chevy Chase and You’re Not, which premieres next year.
While Chase’s hospitalization in 2021 was previously reported, the severity of his condition — including the coma and doctors warning his family to prepare for the worst — had not been publicly disclosed until now.
Chase’s daughter, Caley Chase, says in the documentary that her father “basically came back from the dead.” She recalls doctors warning the family, “We might not get him back. We don’t know how present he’ll be. Prepare yourselves for the worst.” According to Caley, when Chase regained consciousness, “all he could do was use his voice.”
Chase’s wife, Jayni Chase, describes the moment she realized something was seriously wrong. “Something was wrong, and he couldn’t explain to me what was wrong,” she says.
“So, we go to the ER. His heart stops.” She adds that doctors told her Chase had developed cardiomyopathy, explaining, “When the heart muscles get weaker, and they can’t pump as much blood out with each beat.”
A longtime friend of the comedian, Peter Aaron, says medical professionals ultimately placed Chase into a coma for approximately eight days, describing the decision as necessary but physically taxing.
Chase remained hospitalized for roughly five weeks before beginning his recovery.
Although the Caddyshack and National Lampoon star survived the episode, he says the medical trauma has left him with persistent memory gaps.
“According to the doctors, my memory would be shot from it,” Chase says in the documentary.
“That’s what’s happened here.” He adds that he now frequently relies on others to remind him of events or conversations he cannot recall.
The memory issues have also shaped how Chase responds to longstanding reports about his behavior on film and television sets.
In the documentary, he says he does not remember many of the incidents that contributed to his reputation as a difficult collaborator, attributing those gaps to the effects of his illness.
Elsewhere in the film, Chase addresses his feelings about being excluded from SNL50: The Anniversary Special earlier this year.
While he attended the event, the original Saturday Night Live cast member did not appear onstage during the broadcast. “It was kind of upsetting,” Chase says. “I expected that I would’ve been on the stage too with all the other actors.”
