'The Blind Side' Star Quinton Aaron Vows He'll 'Walk Again' After Being Paralyzed in Near-Fatal Stroke — And Split From Wife
'The Blide Side' star Quinton Aaron has given a health update after suffering near-fatal stroke in January.
Aug. 19 2026, Published 5:05 p.m. ET
The Blind Side star Quinton Aaron promises he will "walk again" following a near-fatal spinal stroke.
RadarOnline.com can reveal the actor, known for playing former NFL star Michael Oher in the 2009 Sandra Bullock movie, gave a health update after his scare in January.
Cause for Optimism Revealed
Aaron can now feel people touching his legs.
He's currently in a rehab facility where he is recovering and "getting some strength back" after being left paralyzed from the waist down.
Addressing his cause for optimism, Aaron explained he can "feel when people touch my legs all the way up and down (and to) my stomach," although he still cannot "register pain."
The star recalled a recent instance when he was lying down and watching a movie. When something on the screen made him jump, his leg also moved.
"I sent a video to (my rep), and she started crying. I was like, 'I told you, I'm gonna walk again.'"
'It's a Miracle I'm Still Alive'
The actor says the odds of survival were not in his favor.
Due to the movement in his legs, the actor expressed that doctors "said there is a possibility of recovery because you can move some of your joints and you can feel."
Aaron recalled the agonizing moment he woke up having lost movement and feelings in his legs after going to bed with severe back pain.
When he was at the hospital, he fell into a coma and went into cardiac arrest. The actor was resuscitated more than once, and he told Us Weekly that during one instance when he coded, he "saw Jesus."
He says the stroke was caused by an infection that "traveled through my bloodstream into my spinal cord and lungs" and described surviving the stroke as a “miracle”.
During his hospitalization, more drama ensued, after it was claimed his wife Margarita DeLeon, whom he wed in 2024, was still legally married to another man.
Marriage to Wife Voided
Aaron has not spoken to his wife since hospitalization.
Aaron claims that he and DeLeon have not spoken since he was taken to the hospital, and their marriage was voided "because we weren't legally married."
"There were times I remember seeing her in the room, but I was in and out of consciousness, and I didn’t speak to her because I was intubated," he added. "I don’t need to speak to her ever again."
When asked what their relationship was like before his stroke, Aaron said: "We weren't in a good space. (There were) a lot of arguments and accusations and lies. I'd been praying for God to remove her from my life because I felt like I was stuck. I was done a long time ago.
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Former co-star Sandra Bullock checked on his well-being.
"I feel like if this was the final nail in the coffin, so to speak, the thing that had to happen in order to finally separate us," he shared. "I was OK with it. I still (have) my life. I mean, I’m seated right now. I can’t really do the things (and) everything I used to, but I can still do some."
"I still got some pep in my step when I get my step back."
Aaron also told how he discovered former co-star Bullock checked in on him through the production company who made The Blind Side, though he has not heard directly from the Oscar-winner.
Still, they may reunite in the future as Aaron wants to return to movies and become a director.
He explained: "Whether it's in a chair or on my feet, I'll be on the screen again. I'm writing a script, and I’ll be directing in the future."
