Barry Keoghan Almost Lost an Arm to a Flesh-Eating Disease

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Barry Keoghan is riding high on the critical acclaim he's been garnering for his compelling central performance in Emerald Fennell's psychosexual thriller Saltburn, but for a minute there it looked like life was going to go very differently. In a recent profile with GQ, the Irish actor opens up about his previous health issues, and reveals that he became very seriously sick shortly before filming The Banshees of Inisherin.

Keoghan had contracted a severe case of necrotizing fasciitis in his left arm in 2021, a rare flesh-eating infection which occurs when bacteria enter the body via cuts, scrapes and burns. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one in five patients experiencing necrotizing fasciitis die, even after receiving treatment.

In the profile, Keoghan recalls asking the doctors "I'm not gonna die, right?" and the response being, "Well, we don't know." He ended up keeping his arm, although he still carries scarring from the surgery required to remove the infected tissue.

In the same piece, The Banshees of Inisherin writer-director Martin McDonagh reflects on how Keoghan reacted to the news, having visited him in the hospital. "I'm not sure if he was on a lot of meds, but he seemed to shrug it off," he said. "We were only about four days out from shooting, and his arm was puffed up. But he was like, 'Yeah, no, I’m going to be fine—I’ll see you on Tuesday.' I went to the hospital thinking, Shit—is he going to die? Let alone, is he going to make the movie. But I came out of there energized and looking forward to it."

One more thing that Keoghan remembers from that time in the hospital: McDonagh telling him, "Just remember this when you’ve been nominated for an Oscar."Which is exactly what happened: Keoghan received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor. And the Oscars may well come calling again this year, thanks to the role of Oliver Quick in Saltburn.

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