Morgan Freeman and his wife, Myrna Colley-Lee, are shown at the after party for “The Country Girl” at Tavern On the Green in NY on 4/17/08. Credit: WENN

Morgan Freeman’s life sure has been in a lot of turmoil lately. After his very serious car crash on Sunday night, Freeman and his female passenger, Demaris Meyer, were airlifted to a hospital. He had a broken arm, broken elbow, and some type of shoulder injury, resulting in surgery to reconnect nerves and fix the damage in his left arm and hand.

There was a lot of gossip wondering why Freeman was out so late at night with a woman that wasn’t his wife. While it was originally reported that Meyer was a longtime friend of Freeman’s wife (which still may be true) it could be that she’s his girlfriend. It was confirmed today that Freeman and wife Myrna Colley-Lee are getting divorced, and have been legally separated since December.

The drama continues for Dark Knight star Morgan Freeman. Days after he was involved in a serious car accident, Freeman’s business partner says the actor and his wife of 24 years, costumer Myrna Colley-Lee, have called it quits.

Mississippi-based attorney Bill Luckett tells Access Hollywood the couple “are involved in a divorce action.” Luckett adds that “for legal and practical purposes, [Freeman and Colley-Lee] have been separated since December of 2007.”

The couple met in 1976 when both were working off-Broadway. Freeman has four children: Two from a previous marriage, two from previous relationships.

The news comes as Freeman is recovering in a Memphis hospital following his car accident Sunday. His rep said the actor is “doing well” after doctor reconnected nerves and repaired damage to his left arm and hand on Monday. He is expected to be released in a few days.

[From Us Weekly]

The header photo is of the couple together this past April, well after the December date of their split. The phrasing was quite odd, “for legal and practical purposes, [Freeman and Colley-Lee] have been separated since December of 2007.” Huh? Were they split or not? If so, why phrase it that way? And why were they together at a party? Perhaps they were keeping up appearances, or broke up and reconciled a time or two. Either way, it seems pretty obvious that Demaris Meyer is probably more than just a “family friend.”

By all reports Morgan Freeman is doing significantly better than hoped after his serious car accident late Sunday evening. The final assessment of his injuries is that he has a broken elbow, broken arm, and some sort of “shoulder damage,” according to his rep. Considering he was in a rollover accident, it sounds like he got pretty lucky.

Morgan Freeman is on the mend after a Sunday night car crash that resulted in his being airlifted to a hospital in Memphis.

“Morgan is doing well after his surgery last night to reconnect nerves and repair damage in his left arm and hand,” his spokesperson, Donna Lee, said in a statement Tuesday.

“The surgery last night lasted four and a half hours. He’s visiting with family this morning. As of this morning he’s up and walking around and looking forward to his release in a few days.”

Freeman, 71, was driving in Mississippi’s Tallahatchie County when the accident occurred. Extracted from the wreck by emergency crews using the jaws of life, the Dark Knight actor was said to be “in good spirits” Monday after he reached the Regional Medical Center at Memphis, where his surgery took place.

[From People]

Despite initial reports that Freeman might have fallen asleep at the wheel, it’s now being speculated that heavy rain caused the accident. According to someone who lives near the accident scene, the car skidded on the slick road and flipped multiple times, before landing upright in a ditch that had at least eight inches of water.

There were also gardening tools, recipes, herbs, and spices scattered around the accident scene. The neighbor also said that Freeman was initially unconscious but came to very quickly and was talking to emergency personnel. It sounds like he should be okay and out of the hospital relatively quickly.

Here’s Morgan Freeman with Jack Nicholson at the premiere of “The Bucket List” in Paris on July 17th. Images thanks to Fame.

News came out earlier today that Morgan Freeman was involved in a one-car accident in Mississippi last night in which he and a female passenger had to be cut out of the car, a 1997 Nissan, with the jaws of life. Morgan was airlifted to a hospital 100 miles from the accident, and an official there would only comment that his condition was “serious,” which sounded dire. He was said to be conscious and talking to rescuers at the scene. The Guardian has a quote from a friend of Freeman’s, who says that he has also been sitting up and talking in the hospital. They also have the name of his passenger, and say that the car Freeman was driving belonged to her. That would make sense as it’s an older model.

No drugs or alcohol were thought to be involved in the crash and there is speculation that Freeman fell asleep at the wheel.

Freeman was driving near his home in Charleston, Mississippi, at the time of the accident. The actor and a female companion were cut free by emergency workers before being airlifted to a hospital 90 miles away in Memphis, Tennessee.

Kathy Stringer, a spokeswoman for the regional medical centre in Memphis, described the 71-year-old actor’s condition as “serious”.

The editor of the Charleston Sun Sentinel newspaper, who arrived at the scene shortly after the accident, said Freeman had been conscious and talking to rescuers.

“They had to use the jaws of life [hydraulic cutters] to extract him from the vehicle,” Clay McFerrin said. “He was lucid, conscious. He was talking, joking with some of the rescue workers at one point.”

His account was confirmed by state troopers, who added that Freeman’s 1997 Nissan Maxima had apparently gone off the road. The actor overcorrected, causing the car to flip over several times before coming to a rest.

Mississippi highway patrol sergeant Ben Williams told the Clarion-Ledger newspaper: “Both [occupants] had some injuries, to what extent I do not know.”

Police confirmed that Freeman and his passenger were both wearing seatbelts when the accident happened at 11.30pm.

Williams said the car Freeman had been driving belonged to Demaris Meyer, of Memphis. The car left a rural highway and overturned several times. “There’s no indication that either alcohol or drugs were involved,” Williams said.

There was still no information on Ms Meyer’s condition, he added.

Bill Luckett, a friend of the actor and co-owner of Freeman’s restaurant, Madidi, said he was sitting up and talking at the hospital.

[From Guardian.co.uk]

MTV reports that Freeman was even cracking jokes at the scene, telling people trying to take photos “No freebies! No freebies!” His injuries are thought to be broken ribs and a hurt knee.

That sounds a lot more promising than the earlier reports that he was in serious condition and I hope Freeman is going to be ok. The 71 year-old Oscar winner is next scheduled to work on The Human Factor, based on a book about the 1995 Rugby Cup, and directed by Clint Eastwood. Hopefully he will make a full recovery.

Update: Morgan’s rep tells People that his injuries are a broken arm, elbow, and “shoulder damage,” and it sounds like he’s doing pretty well under the circumstances:

“He has a broken arm, broken elbow and minor shoulder damage but he is in good spirits,” said Donna Lee. “He is going to have surgery this afternoon or tomorrow to correct the damage. He says he’ll be okay and is looking forward to a full recovery.”

[From People.com]

Morgan Freeman is shown in the header outside The Late Show on 6/23/08. Credit: HRC/WENN. He is shown below at a screening of Miss Pettigrew on 3/2/08. Credit: PNP/WENN

Morgan Freeman was in a very serious car accident last night. According to several media outlets, the 71 year-old Dark Knight actor crashed his 1997 Nissan Maxima on Highway 32 in Mississippi. TMZ and the Memphis CBS affiliate station both are reporting that Freeman may have fallen asleep at the wheel. Though he was conscious and able to talk to state troopers after the accident, Freeman had to be airlifted to a hospital one hundred miles away and is said to be in serious condition.

Morgan Freeman just had the darkest night of his life. The Oscar-winning Batman sidekick is listed in serious condition in a Memphis hospital following a Sunday night car accident, says hospital spokeswoman Kathy Stringer.

Mississippi Highway Patrol spokesman Ben Williams told Memphis’ NBC affiliate that Freeman and an unidentified female passenger were heading east on Mississippi Highway 32 when his vehicle went off the road. Freeman then overcorrected the vehicle, causing his 1997 Nissan Maxima to flip several times before coming to a rest.

Mediatakeout.com was first to report the smashup, which occurred around 11:30 p.m. just outside the town of Ruleville, Miss. Freeman was airlifted to the Regional Medical Center in Memphis, but apparently was coherent enough to talk to state troopers at the scene.

There was no immediate comment from the actor’s representatives, though CBS’ Memphis affiliate, WREG, reported that Freeman may have fallen asleep at the wheel. Emergency crews responding to the scene reportedly used the jaws of life to free both Freeman and his female passenger from the vehicle. Both were airlifted to the hospital, nicknamed The Med, though there’s no word on the condition of the female passenger.

[From E! News]

A few reports have noted that Freeman’s passenger was a female, and then mention that he’s married, which sounds to me like they’re trying to imply something ridiculous and tacky. It doesn’t seem that the passenger was Freeman’s wife, or that would have been reported by now.

A spokesperson at the Regional Medical Center in Memphis said Freeman is in serious condition. TMZ is also reporting that he broke several ribs and injured his knee – but that his passenger is generally okay, aside from having to be cut out of the vehicle with the jaws of life. They’re both in our thoughts.

Update by Celebitchy: According to a friend of Freeman’s quoted in The Guardian, Freeman was sitting up and talking in the hospital. He was also conscious and talking to rescuers at the crash scene. Drugs and/or alcohol are not thought to have been a factor in the crash:

Williams said the car Freeman had been driving belonged to Demaris Meyer, of Memphis. The car left a rural highway and overturned several times. “There’s no indication that either alcohol or drugs were involved,” Williams said.

There was still no information on Ms Meyer’s condition, he added.

Bill Luckett, a friend of the actor and co-owner of Freeman’s restaurant, Madidi, said he was sitting up and talking at the hospital.

[From Guardian.co.uk]

Update 2: Freeman’s rep says he’s in “good spirits” in the hospital and that he will have surgery for a broken arm, elbow and “shoulder damage.” He is expected to make a full recovery:

“He has a broken arm, broken elbow and minor shoulder damage but he is in good spirits,” said Donna Lee. “He is going to have surgery this afternoon or tomorrow to correct the damage. He says he’ll be okay and is looking forward to a full recovery.”

[From People]

Here are file photos of Morgan Freeman. Credit: WENN