Quinton Aaron knew something was seriously wrong. In late January, the 42-year-old star of The Blind Side went to sleep with severe back pain — and when he woke up to use the bathroom, he realized he couldn’t move or feel his legs. “The ambulance came, and they had to pick me up and put me on the stretcher. I couldn’t do anything to support my own weight,” Aaron tells Us. “I was completely paralyzed from the waist down.”
That night at the hospital, Aaron slipped into a coma. He says that after regaining consciousness several days later, he went into cardiac arrest and had to be resuscitated multiple times. Doctors told him he’d suffered a spinal stroke and a pulmonary embolism, and he remained intubated — and unable to speak — for nearly a month. During that time, family members delivered shocking news: Margarita DeLeon — the woman Aaron wed in December 2024 — was still legally married to her previous husband. DeLeon, who claims she was unaware that her divorce hadn’t been finalized, was prevented from making medical decisions for Aaron. He tells Us he hasn’t spoken to her since his stroke.
Now, the 6-foot-8 actor is continuing his recovery at a rehab facility. A devout Christian, Aaron is “very optimistic” that he’ll walk again and views his health crisis as a blessing. “It’s a miracle I’m still here,” he says. “My purpose moving forward is to take advantage of the second chance I’ve been given.” He’s writing a book and developing an iHeartRadio podcast, “Podcast 2.0,” along with a clothing line and documentary. “I’m excited to still be here,” Aaron says, “and to tell my story.”
How are you feeling today?
It’s been a journey, but I feel good. [I’m] getting my voice back, which is cool. I didn’t sound like myself before. My right hand has been numb and tingly the whole time. Some days it feels weak and stiff. I’m getting some strength back too [though], doing my exercises. I call them “curls for the girls.” I have to be able to support my weight, you know, by scooting out of bed into a wheelchair, or out of the wheelchair back in bed. Because all my upper body strength has gone away since this incident happened, it’s very hard to even sit up in bed without support. I’m definitely doing a lot of strength training to get to the point where I can support my weight through my arms and in the upper body and core.
Were you having health issues before the stroke?
I was ignoring my body and facing a lot of medical things [like] diabetes [and] congestive heart failure. I had an infection that traveled through my bloodstream into my spinal cord and lungs, which caused the stroke. Thank God I decided to go to the hospital that night, or else we wouldn’t be having this conversation right now.
Have you noticed any progress?
I can feel when people touch my legs all the way up and down [and to] my stomach. I can’t register pain, though. One night I was lying there watching a movie, and I jumped at [something on] the TV, and my leg moved. I sent a video to [my rep], and she started crying. I was like, “I told you, I’m gonna walk again.”
What do the doctors say?
I respect doctors, but I’ve learned a long time ago to not listen to them over my own optimism and my belief in God. They don’t want to [give] you hope because they feel like you’ll translate it into “She said I’m gonna do this, and I’m not doing it.” They err on the side of “Let’s scare the crap out of them.” With my leg movements, they have said there is a possibility of recovery because you can move some of your joints and you can feel. So that is very good.
How are you doing emotionally?
I’ve figured out ways to channel what I’m going through into motivation. [I’ve felt] down and alone and depressed, but getting back to work has helped me be able to endure what I’ve been going through a lot better with a better mental state. I’m in bed right now mostly or in a wheelchair, but I can still get around. I’m not gonna let what happened to me defeat me or define me. I’m still gonna be who I am to the fullest, and I’ve grown a lot in these past six months. My faith is a huge factor in my mental endurance; you do not find a quit in me. I keep telling everyone that not only am I going to walk again but I’m going to run and swim and do all the things I used to. I’m gonna build myself back up better than before.
Tell Us more about how your faith has helped you through this.
The day I woke up from my coma, I coded a couple times, and one of those times, I saw Jesus. He appeared in front of me and placed his hands on my back and took the pain away. I thought I dreamed it, but when I woke up, the pain in my back was gone completely. I was like, “This is crazy,” but I couldn’t tell anybody what happened. I knew from that moment that I didn’t need any kind of spinal surgery or anything. But at the same time, I still couldn’t move my legs. I look at it as this is my moment to be seated; God wants me seated right now. He’s working on my behalf, and I’m doing what I can from where I am. My recovery is going the way God intends, and I’m not afraid.
Your faith must also help you deal with the situation involving your ex.
It’s definitely been a challenge dealing with that and the recovery. [Earlier on], a lot of things aggravated me easily, which spiked my blood pressure. When I was intubated, I was dealing with depression and anger and all these different emotions. So I got to this point where I had to completely shut all of that out. In order for me to move forward, I needed to completely remove her from my life. So that’s what I did. As a Christian, I forgave her a long time ago because I didn’t want to hold on to the anger and have it slow down my process of healing. I really do wish her well. I hope she gets the help she needs.
So Margarita had told you she was divorced?
Absolutely. We would’ve never spoken if I knew she was married. I’m not the type of person that messes with married women. She kept telling me she was divorced for 10-plus years.
Did you believe the two of you were legally married?
It was supposed to be a legal marriage. Thankfully, the marriage was voided. I didn’t need to annul it because we weren’t legally married. I dodged a bullet there.
And you haven’t seen her since the stroke?
[Not] since the day we went to the hospital. 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. I don’t need to speak to her ever again.
You’re ready to move on.
Absolutely. God has blessed me with a second chance to do it the right way. I’m gonna leave him in charge of the love department. I got too much else to focus on. I was on Tinder. I was on Bumble. I was on Facebook dating. And I found her on TikTok. I’m not doing that anymore.
How was the relationship before your stroke?
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. So 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, 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.
What’s the recovery process been like?
I was somebody who could bench press 275 pounds. I was strong. When I woke up from the stroke, my muscles were gone. The rotator cuff got so weak it couldn’t support the ball in the socket joint, so I would take my left arm to pick up my right arm. I do curls and shoulder presses and all of that, even if it’s from the bed. [When I] see the results, I’m excited because it tells me to keep going.
Have any celebs checked in on you?
I got a couple messages from Selma Blair. I love her. I worked with her back in the day on a film [2016’s Mothers and Daughters], and we’ve had a cool friendship ever since. I haven’t heard from [ The Blind Side costar] Sandra [Bullock], but I did hear that she reached out to the production company that did the movie, and they gave her an update on me.
What do you hope the future looks like for you?
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. I also plan on doing speaking tours to tell my story [and] to talk about the journey, the mental toughness, the emotional toughness, the feeling like you want to break but not doing it. Everything that I’m experiencing, I feel like it wasn’t just for me. It was for everyone else who’s experiencing something similar. A lot of people give up, and I want to encourage them to do the opposite. I have to keep going. God didn’t bring me back for nothing.
There’s a lot to look forward to. Tell Us what you’re working on.
I’ve teamed up with some amazing people who are helping to bring some cool things to light. [I’m working on] vertical microdramas with Upscale Productions’ Malik Davis, who is the CEO, and [my manager] Liana Mendoza. [Also] I’ve teamed up with bestselling author Blake Harrington to write a book, The Blind Side of Love. For so long, I couldn’t say anything because, one, I was intubated; [I] couldn’t talk, [I] didn’t have a voice, so I’m setting the record straight.
You’re calling your podcast “Podcast 2.0.” Why?
Everybody has a 1.0. It’s the person you were born into and became [in light of] what life has done to you. But 2.0 is about how you respond to life and develop into that better version of yourself. It’s about getting people to operate on a higher frequency and stop wasting time that we take for granted and start living life.
You also referred to your weight-loss health journey as Quinton 2.0…
Quinton 2.0 is someone who speaks his mind. I spent a lot of my adult life biting my tongue. I’m a lot bolder today. I don’t believe in disrespecting people, but I do believe in checking disrespectful people. I took a lot on the chin. I still have a strong chin; I also have a strong mouth with a heavy vocabulary to follow it.
You feel like you’ve found your voice.
There’s always more because it’s a constant journey of self-discovery. We learn something new every day. This new version of me is someone who’s going to bring to light everything that might be hidden in the darkness. I don’t claim to be someone who knows everything, but I will give the answers I do have because I feel it’s my duty to help people in the best way I can.
