Chevy Chase has opened up about experiencing memory loss following a significant health scare in 2021, when he fell into a coma for eight days due to heart failure.
WASHINGTON — Renowned American comedian and actor Chevy Chase, alongside his daughter Caley, has disclosed that he is grappling with memory loss after a medical emergency in 2021 left him in a coma for a week.
At 82, Chase faced heart failure during the pandemic, leading to a medically induced coma, an ordeal described as “pretty rough on the body” by his friend Peter Aaron in a new documentary titled “I’m Chevy Chase and You’re Not.”
This documentary is set to premiere on CNN on January 1, 2026, at 8 p.m. EST.
The Emmy-winning former “Saturday Night Live” star admitted that he now needs reminders for certain things due to the effects of the coma.
“Doctors informed me that my memory would suffer, and indeed, that’s the situation,” Chase revealed in the documentary.
“Heart failure is what it is,” he said. “I’m fine now. It’s just that it affects your memory, and the doctors have told me that.”
Variety reported when Chase was asked about moments from his past, like those on “SNL” and “Community,” he didn’t remember many of them.
Chase said he plays card games and chess to improve his “cognitive disability.”
The documentary was made by Emmy-winning filmmaker Marina Zenovich
“I’ve always loved a challenge, and Chevy certainly offered one. I wanted to understand the real person behind the guarded, conflicted man we’ve often seen on camera,” Zenovich said in a press release. “Beneath the bravado, I found someone deeply human, with layers of humor and emotion that make him far more complex than his public persona may suggest.”
Interviews include Chase’s family and close friends, but also many other collaborators like Dan Aykroyd, Beverly D’Angelo, Goldie Hawn, Lorne Michaels, Ryan Reynolds and Martin Short.
