Following Morgan Freeman’s onstage appearance at the 2023 Oscars, viewers took to Twitter sharing messages of concern over the actor’s glove worn on his left hand.
The 85-year-old hit the Dolby Theatre stage on Sunday night with Margot Robbie to celebrate Warner Bros.’ 100th anniversary.
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However, the “Shawshank Redemption” star’s fans quickly assured others that the black satin garment is not an unusual accessory for Freeman, explaining that he’s worn a compression glove on numerous occasions ever since he paralyzed his left hand in a car accident almost 15 years ago. Freeman wears the glove for comfort, as it supports blood circulation by lightly squeezing the veins in his hand, which can also help with tingling, pain and swelling, according to Healthline.
In August 2008, the actor was involved in a near-fatal car crash on a Mississippi highway, which left him with permanent nerve damage, unable to wiggle his fingers.
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“I suffered nerve damage, and it hasn’t gotten better,” Freeman told People back in 2010. “I can’t move it.”
“If you don’t move your hand, it will swell up,” he added. “Do you know you move your hand about a million times a day?”
At the time of Freeman’s accident, a local newspaper editor, who was at the scene, described the actor as miraculously “lucid,” following the crash, which saw his car flip several times.
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“They had to use the jaws of life [hydraulic cutters] to extract him from the vehicle,” Clay McFerrin told the Guardian. “[Freeman] was lucid, conscious. He was talking, joking with some of the rescue workers at one point.”
Despite his positive attitude, it was later revealed that the actor had to undergo a four-hour surgery to repair a broken left shoulder, arm and elbow.
