Will Smith Nearly Died During North Pole Dive After Accidentally Pulling Off Breathing Mask

Will Smith

Will Smith Nearly Died During North Pole Dive After Accidentally Pulling Off Breathing Mask

#WillSmith is grateful to still be here!

The Academy Award winner opened up about a frightening moment while filming his Disney+ travel series, Pole to Pole With Will Smith, revealing he nearly d!ed during a scuba dive at the North Pole. Speaking on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, Will, 57, described how the dive under up to 10 feet of ice took a dangerous turn when he heard someone shout, “Abort dive! Abort dive! Abort!” and tried to ascend back to the surface. As he fought to retrace his tether to the entry hole, he unintentionally dislodged his mask, leaving him momentarily without air beneath the frozen water.

Will said he managed to secure his gear and calm himself, joking through the panic that if he survived, he’d change his approach: “If I get out of here, I’m only gonna do Black stuff from here on out… I promise Lord! African American behavior from here on out!” Once someone grabbed his tether and pulled him back toward the hole, the terrifying situation shifted to awe. “When I realized I was good, I just relaxed and I looked around and when I tell you, the sun is coming through the ice and it went from terror to the most spiritual, beautiful thing,” Will said.

Nice to see Will found the upside in such a scary situation.