Barry Keoghan’s Chilling 'Post-Death Vision’: Actor Recalls Begging to 'Stay' After 'Dying for a Few Seconds' From Flesh-Eating Bacteria

Barry Keoghan is getting candid about a terrifying brush with death — and the haunting vision that came with it.

During an episode of the podcast “Friends Keep Secrets,” the actor revealed he once “technically did die for a few seconds” after contracting a rare and life-threatening infection known as necrotizing fasciitis, often referred to as flesh-eating bacteria.

The star said the violent incident left him vulnerable to the infection.

“I got hit with a bottle, and it went in my blood system,” he said, describing how the bacteria entered his body. “It’s a very rare infection.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, necrotizing fasciitis is a rare bacterial infection that spreads quickly and can be deadly. The condition develops when bacteria enter the skin through cuts, scrapes, burns or even insect bites. Even with treatment, the CDC notes that 1 in 5 people do not survive.

Speaking to hosts Lil Dicky, Kristin Batalucco and Benny Blanco, the Saltburn star explained that the ordeal happened shortly before filming The Banshees of Inisherin, which was released in October 2022.

Things escalated fast, but doctors were able to step in just in time.

“They caught it. So, they brought over doctors from Liverpool to catch it. And then I filmed the movie three weeks later,” he shared, adding how close he came to losing a limb — or even his life.

Still, what stayed with him most wasn’t just the physical toll, but what he experienced in the moments he lost consciousness.

“I technically did die for a few seconds,” Keoghan said.

When asked if he had a vision, he answered, “I did… I swear to you it was almost like a f------ painting.”

“There was this sort of image… the fields and the wind, but there was this girl walking away and she wouldn’t look back,” he recalled. “I kept calling her and she just kept walking and I wanted to see who it was.”

At the same time, chaos was unfolding around him.

“On this side there was loads of lads stabbing me and trying to push me over,” he said, later realizing it mirrored what doctors were doing in real life to save him. “They were trying to push me over to this side.”

In that moment, Keoghan said he fought hard for his life.

“I swear… I was begging them that I could stay,” he shared. “I was like, ‘Please let me stay.’ And they were like, ‘All right, let him stay.’”

The near-death experience came during a particularly difficult chapter in his life, as the actor admitted he was dealing with substance use at the time.

“I went through psychosis… from drugs,” he revealed.

Keoghan said it took multiple healing attempts before something finally clicked.

“My my mom died at 32 of heroin. My dad passed away. But the curiosity of still wanting to do this from me of course is absolutely like it took me three attempts of rehab and it was finally Malibu at the point that and there was a sudden switch and it was when I was 32 you know same age as my mom I was like that's it I'm not doing it,” he explained.

Now, he said he’s in a much better place.

“I’m clean now… like two and a half years,” Keoghan revealed.

In the end, Keoghan survived the infection — though it left a lasting mark. To this day, he still has a scar running up his arm from the surgery that saved his life.