‘West Wing’ star opens up about harrowing battle with COVID-19: ‘It didn’t look good’
The West Wing star Richard Schiff, now starring in ABC’s The Good Doctor, appeared on The Last Word With Lawrence O’Donnell Wednesday night where he revealed just how dire things seemed to be when he was in the hospital with COVID-19. Schiff announced in a tweet on November 16 that he had been hospitalized, thirteen days after he and his wife, actress Sheila Kelley, posted on social media on November 3 that they had tested positive. For the thirteen days between testing positive and going to the hospital, Schiff said it felt like the virus wanted to stop him from breathing. Once admitted, Schiff said it got so bad that he and Kelley had to have a tough conversation.
“The conversation that I had to have with Sheila, because it didn’t look good there for a day or two,” Schiff said before fighting back tears, “is a conversation you don’t want to have with anyone, ever. This is a tough one.”
Video Transcript
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RICHARD SCHIFF: It wants to stop you from breathing. That's what it felt like. It felt like that for 13 days until I finally went to the hospital. [MUSIC PLAYING]
- "The West Wing" and "The Good Doctor" star Richard Schiff appeared on "The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell" Wednesday night, where he got emotional while opening up about his harrowing battle with COVID-19. Schiff was hospitalized because of the disease and, at one point, things looked so dire that he and his wife Sheila Kelley were forced to have some tough conversations.
RICHARD SCHIFF: The conversation that I had to have was Sheila, because it didn't look good there for a day or two, is a conversation you don't want to have with anyone ever.
- While Schiff realizes how lucky he is to have made it through COVID alive, he is still dealing with serious physical issues. All of my energy is gone. My strength is gone. My muscles have atrophied. It's coming back ever so slowly. And Schiff pleaded with the American people to take COVID-19 seriously and not just view it as a partisan issue.
RICHARD SCHIFF: Biden has it correct, you know, it's not a political thing. It's not a partisan thing. It's common sense. I can't stress enough to people that you do not want this.
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