Jesse Eisenberg’s upcoming kidney donation has a surprising origin story that traces back to his time filming Now You See Me over a decade ago.
The 42-year-old actor recently revealed that he will undergo surgery next month to donate one of his kidneys. In a new interview, Eisenberg shared how a daring on-set experience helped him overcome personal fears, first of heights, then of needles, and ultimately led to his decision to become an altruistic organ donor.
“There’s a scene where the characters are on stage, and we’re in harnesses getting pulled up to the top of the rafters,” Eisenberg recalled to E! News. “We were about to take a long break, and I asked the effects people, ‘Do you mind if I stay up here? I really like being up here.’”
Though he had long been afraid of heights, the actor said he felt unexpectedly calm. “I wasn’t scared because I had a purpose. I was up there for the part, for a movie,” he said. That realization sparked an idea: if purpose could help him conquer one fear, perhaps it could help him face another.
“I’ve always had a fear of needles,” he admitted. “I thought, if I start donating blood, maybe I won’t be afraid anymore because I’d be doing it for a good reason.”
Eisenberg began donating blood regularly and quickly noticed that the fear vanished. “I realized when I have a purpose, when I’m doing something meaningful, I have no hesitation,” he said.
That mindset eventually led him to his next act of generosity. Speaking on the Today show in late October, Eisenberg shared that he’s preparing for a kidney donation in mid-December. “I just have so much blood in me, and I feel like I should spill it,” he joked. “I got bitten by the blood donation bug. I love it. I’m doing an altruistic donation.”
The Fleishman Is in Trouble star, who shares an eight-year-old son, Banner, with his wife Anna Strout, emphasized that the procedure comes with little downside. “It’s essentially risk-free and so needed,” he told Today.com. “I think people will realize that it’s a no-brainer if you have the time and the inclination.”
Eisenberg also noted that under the National Kidney Foundation’s family voucher program, his relatives would receive priority if they ever required a transplant. “The way it works now is you can put a list of whoever you’d like to be at the top of the list,” he explained. “So it’s risk-free for my family as well.”
Eisenberg is set to reprise his role as illusionist J. Daniel Atlas in the upcoming third Now You See Me film, Now You See Me, Now You Don’t, and he’s turning one of life’s greatest fears into an act of compassion and courage.
Image Credit: Bang Showbiz