It’s safe to say that actor Morgan Freeman is everyone’s favorite. Besides his unbeatable acting skills, he’s also known for his distinguishing deep voice and the freckles on his face.
Over the span of 50 years he’s played plenty of roles in a number of memorable films such as Street Smart in 1986, The Shawshank Redemption in 1994, and Invictus in 2014, all of which brought him Oscar nominations. He, however, received the prestigious award for his role in Million Dollar Baby in 2005.
Freeman’s path to fame didn’t come easy to him. In fact, he didn’t get his big break in Hollywood until Street Smart. Today, however, he has an impressive number of acting accolades under his belt.
Another thing Freeman is recognized for are his golden hoop earrings that he never takes off.
According to the actor, he got the earrings inspired by Burt Lancaster, who wore a pair in a pirate movie, probably 1952’s The Crimson Pirate. “I thought that was sexy. Then I learned that sailors wore gold earrings to pay for funerals if they died in foreign lands. I’m a sailor, so that nailed it,” Freeman told Fox News in 2016.
He also revealed that he has been questioned about the earrings many times throughout the years and that’s why he decided to share the story behind them and their significance to him.
“I’m constantly questioned about them. The fact is that my possessions are only valuable enough for someone to purchase a casket for me in the improbable event that I die somewhere unknown. That’s why I wear them, and why sailors do as well,” he wrote in an Instagram post.
According to Celebrity Net Worth, Freeman has a net worth of $250 million.
At the 2023 Oscars, Freeman was spotted wearing a black glove on his left hand. And as those unaware of the real reason for it believed it was just a stylistic preference, Freeman’s fans knew the actor was wearing the glove because of the bad accident he was involved in years ago.
Namely, back in 2008, Freeman injured his arm while driving home late one night when his car veered off the road and flipped several times before coming to an eventual stop in a ditch.
Paramedics arrived quickly and he was conscious but needed to be transferred to a Memphis hospital located over 100 miles away from the scene of the crash.
Freeman ended up with a couple of broken ribs and was forced to undergo a four-hour long surgery for his hand.
Though he mostly recovered, the Shawshank Redemption star was left with a lasting physical nerve damage in his left hand known as fibromyalgia. Unfortunately, his arm was left paralyzed.