An unexpected revelation. Ashton Kutcher claimed that he didn’t initially plan on coming forward with his vasculitis diagnosis.
The 44-year-old No Strings Attached actor’s fight with the rare autoimmune disorder became public knowledge during an August 2022 episode of Running Wild With Bear Grylls: The Challenge. Kutcher told Esquire in an interview published on Tuesday, January 31, that he didn’t think the conversation would air.
“At the end of the day, I have to look at it and be like, ‘All right, well, maybe it needed to come out,'” the That ’70s Show alum added. “Maybe somebody will see this and go, ‘Oh, this is helpful for me in some way knowing this’ … hopefully that helps.”
News of his health scare caused widespread concern for the Iowa native, but he didn’t want to be viewed differently. “I ran a f–king marathon,” he said, noting that he’d like to “pass” on questions about his condition. “Are you OK? Everybody goes through s–t.”
While appearing on the wilderness show last summer, Kutcher opened up to Bear Grylls about being left bedridden by a bout with illness. (According to Esquire, a spokesperson for Grylls did not respond when asked to comment on Kutcher’s claims.)
“Two years ago, I had this weird, super rare form of vasculitis, that, like, knocked out my vision, it knocked out my hearing, it knocked out, like, all my equilibrium,” the Two and a Half Men alum said in the August 2022 clip. “You don’t really appreciate it until it’s gone. Until you go, ‘I don’t know if I’m ever going to be able to see again, I don’t know if I’m ever going to be able to hear again, I don’t know if I’m ever going to be able to walk again.'”
Kutcher asserted at the time that he felt “lucky to be alive,” adding: “The minute you start seeing your obstacles as things that are made for you, to give you what you need, then life starts to get fun, right?”
Vasculitis is defined by the Mayo Clinic as inflammation of the blood vessels that can lead to organ and tissue damage. Some patients experience more long-lasting symptoms, but the condition can also be short-term.
As his diagnosis made headlines, Kutcher cleared the air about his health. “Before there are a bunch of rumors/ chatter/ whatever out there. Yes, I had a rare vasculitis episode 3yrs ago. (Autoimmune flair up),” he tweeted in August 2022. “I had some impairments hear, vision, balance issues right after. I fully recovered. All good. Moving on. See you at the 2022 NY Marathon w/Thorn.”
Mila Kunis, who exchanged vows with Kutcher in 2015, later revealed how the couple approached the challenge. “I don’t think you have time to sit down and talk, you kinda just power through,” she told Entertainment Tonight in September 2022. “You go and deal with whatever health issue comes your way, but you still got kids, you still got a family, and you have to live life. And I think that we are so fortunate to have one another, but as far as sitting there and incessantly talking about things, no. You gotta do.”
The twosome share daughter Wyatt, 8, and son Dimitri, 6. Kunis, 39, was “terrified about losing” her husband amid his health battle, a source exclusively told Us Weekly.
“[She was] there every step of the way,” the insider added last fall. “This has made their bond grow even stronger.”
