What Happened to Emily Willis? Inside Coma-Stricken Porn Star's Health Updates — From 'Movement' to 'Noises'
Emily Willis' family is now suing the rehab center where she suffered cardiac arrest.
April 17 2025, Published 5:45 p.m. ET
Emily Willis found herself in a comma for two months after suffering cardiac arrest and ending up paralyzed and permanently disabled.
The former adult film star – born Litzy Lara Banuelos — checked into the Summit Malibu rehab on January 27, 2024, in hopes of overcoming her ketamine addiction, but things took a turn for the worse just days later, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
The former adult star suffered cardiac arrest in 2024 after entering a rehab center.
Following her cardiac arrest, the star's family hired attorney James Morris to represent them in a negligence lawsuit against the rehab center, claiming Banuelos was free of ketamine upon arrival and throughout her stay at the facility.
According to Morris, Banuelos is permanently disabled due to an anoxic brain injury, which is what occurs after the brain is deprived of oxygen for an extended period of time. Upon a nurse discovering her, 911 was called and CPR was attempted for about 30 to 40 minutes before restoring a heartbeat.
Morris previously revealed Banuelos is now under the care of her mother in Utah: "She has been most recently transferred to her mother's home, and she is there and she is being cared for by her mother."
The star was left in a comma for two months.
In February 2025, Morris confirmed Banuelos can now "move her body somewhat" and "make outward noises."
He said: "She does make outward noises from time to time, she does move her body around some, but her eyes do move, she does track, whether or not she's understanding exactly what's going on is hard for us to determine, I don't know.
"We are retaining a physiatrist to work as an expert witness on our case who will go to Utah examine her and hopefully be able to give us more info about his expert opinion to what extent she understands what's happening around her."
At the time, Banuelos was believed to be suffering from locked-in syndrome, a rare neurological disorder which involves paralysis of nearly all voluntary muscles.
"We've ordered (her medical records) and as soon as we see them we'll be able to see what the neurologist on charge or at the hospital that day had to say about her condition, and whether or not she does have the locked-in syndrome," Morris said at the time.
According to Banuelos' family, the now 26-year-old star weighed just 80 pounds before she was checked into the facility. The lawsuit notes the staff allegedly witnessed Banuelos' health deteriorating over several days but did not call 911 or send her to a hospital for medical care.
There is a possibility she now has locked-in syndrome.
"No patient should ever be subjected to such a horrendous breakdown in clinical care. Her health was ignored until it was too late, and now her life is forever changed," Morris said.
Banuelous, born in Argentina, spent her childhood in Utah before relocating to San Diego where she held down a sales job.
Actor and recruiter Andre Garcia proposed she venture into the world of adult work, after the pair matched on Tinder, which led Banuelos down her career path.
Never Miss an
Daily updates from the heart of Hollywood, right to your inbox
By entering your email and clicking Sign Up, you’re agreeing to let us send you customized marketing messages about us and our advertising partners. You are also agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.
The 26-year-old's family has sued the rehab center for negligence.
She went on to make headlines in May 2020 by featuring in her debut act for The Insatiable Emily Willis, a production by Jules Jordan's studio. By the end of 2023, Banuelous had starred in more than 700 adult films and scenes.
