Actor and comedian Kevin Hart has been spotted walking out of a shopping mall and heading off in another muscle car similar to the one that nearly killed him last month.
“I’m doing good, man,” 40-year-old Hart said. “I’m feeling great. I’m blessed to be alive, brother,” he told the TMZ reporter while leaving a shopping mall in Calabasas, California, together with a friend on Saturday, Nov. 2.
He added about his recovery, “It’s a process. It’s going to take some time, but I’m patient. Right now, [I’m] relaxing, enjoying the family and recovering. That’s all that matters right now,” Hart said carrying full takeout bags from Le Pain Quotidien with his friend crossing the parking lot.
He got behind the wheel of his vintage 69 Camaro—seemingly without a safety harness—and drove off with his friend, apparently undeterred by the past experience that nearly ended his life.
Hart posted a video on Instagram about his recovery on Oct. 29 with some philosophical reflection, saying the accident changed his view on life.
“Basically, what you realize is that you’re not in control,” the stand-up comedian said in the video. “No matter how much you think you’re in control, you’re not in control. And at the end of the day, it can all be over, man.
“You know, when God talks, you gotta listen. I swear, life is funny because some of the craziest things that happen to you end up being the things you needed most. In this case, I honestly feel like God basically told me to sit down. You know, when you’re moving too fast, you’re doing too much, sometimes you can’t see the things that you’re meant to see. But after my accident, I see things differently. I see life from a whole new perspective, and my appreciation for life is through the roof.”
Earlier in October, Hart had issued a public statement through his attorney, Andrew Brettler, The Epoch Times reported. Hart sent well wishes to his friend Jared Black and Black’s fiancee, Rebecca Broxterman—the two others who were in the same vehicle as Hart at the time of the crash.
“I have nothing but love for Jared and wish him and Rebecca a speedy recovery,” the statement read.
Hart’s statement came as a report from the California Highway Patrol (CHP) released on the same day said that driver recklessness had caused the crash. Black was driving the vehicle at the time of the crash.
According to the report, Black was turning onto Mulholland Highway near Malibu around 12:45 local time on Sept. 1, when he accelerated and subsequently lost control of the car.
The quick acceleration caused the right rear tire to break traction, causing Hart’s vintage car—an electric blue 1970 Plymouth Barracuda—to cross the oncoming lane of the two-lane highway and roll down a deep embankment.
The car knocked down a fence before hitting a tree head-on. The impact was such that the tree was uprooted and rolled down the hill, the CHP report said.
Hart was later hospitalized and was discharged from the hospital 10 days after the crash.
Epoch Times reporter Mimi Nguyen Ly contributed to this report
