Dwayne Johnson’s "heart stopped" when he heard about Kevin Hart’s crash.
The ‘Jumanji: The Next Level’ star struggled to catch his breath when he found that his co-star and close friend needed to have emergency surgery on his spine after the car he was travelling in flipped and spun off the road back in September.
Speaking to journalist Kevin McCarthy, Johnson, 47, said: "His situation could’ve gone another way. He knows that, we know that. When I heard the news, my heart stopped and I lost my breath. Kevin’s one of the good ones, he’s a good egg. So I’m really proud of not only his ability to overcome, but we’re here, we’re in Cabo [promoting the film], we made ‘Jumanji’. Life is good. I’m happy that he’s here."
Johnson was over the moon when he saw Kevin for the first time after his accident and they discussed how the 40-year-old comedian’s outlook on life had changed.
He recalled: "We hugged, we had a real strong conversation when he finally came back, face to face, about what this meant and how it had changed him.
"It’s almost as if life and the universe takes this shade and lifts it from your eyes and you view the world a different way. It’s really beautiful."
Kevin – who has Heaven, 14, and Hendrix, 12, with his ex-wife Torrei Hart and two-year-old Kenzo with his current spouse Eniko Parrish – appreciates life more now.
He explained: "It’s not about not working the same and not having the same level of hustle or energy in my profession, but being present to the ones around you that matter most is more of a priority now. The level of appreciation for life is extremely higher, because you do kind of take it for granted. You do bypass the fact that things don’t have to be the way they are, that they could change like that.
"So when you have an experience that shows you that, you understand what that is and what it was and you make being present matter most. For me, that’s the new version of myself. I’m happier now."
Dwayne Johnson’s ‘heart stopped’ when he heard of Kevin Hart’s crash
