12 Years After a Crash Nearly Killed Him, Tracy Morgan Walked Out Onstage at the Espys
· Thought Catalog
Updated 4 minutes ago, July 16, 2026
Tracy Morgan presented at the 2026 ESPY Awards on Wednesday night, standing at Lincoln Center next to Rauw Alejandro to hand out Best Athlete, Men’s Sports. In 2014 he was in a coma with a shattered leg, broken ribs, and a traumatic brain injury after a Walmart truck plowed into his limo.
Morgan and Rauw Alejandro presented Best Athlete, Men’s Sports at the David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center on July 15, 2026.
On June 7, 2014, a Walmart tractor-trailer rear-ended the Mercedes Sprinter Morgan was riding in on the New Jersey Turnpike. His close friend and fellow comedian James “Jimmy Mack” McNair, 62, was killed. Morgan was in critical condition with a pulverized femur, multiple broken ribs, a broken nose, and a traumatic brain injury.
He spent roughly two weeks in a coma. His wife was told doctors weren’t sure he’d wake up. When he did, he was temporarily blind for about a week.
Rehab at JFK Johnson Rehabilitation Institute in Edison, New Jersey stretched on for months. He spent five months in a wheelchair and had to relearn how to walk and speak. His daughter Maven, then about 14 months old, was learning to walk at the same time. He’s called that “magic.”
Morgan settled with Walmart in 2015. He hosted “Saturday Night Live” that October. He said on “Conan” in 2016 that he’d forgiven the truck driver. His 2017 Netflix special “Staying Alive” turned the coma, the rehab, and the depression into stand-up.
He’s since done “The Last O.G.,” “Crutch” on Paramount+, and a new NBC comedy with Tina Fey and Daniel Radcliffe. In December 2025 he went back to JFK Johnson to present a nursing award and visit patients, calling the staff “angels” who put others’ suffering first.
If this resonated, follow Thought Catalog on Facebook and explore more stories on our website.