Pitch Perfect's Adam Devine Was Nearly Killed by a Cement Truck at 11 Here's How It Led Him to Comedy

Adam Devine has recalled how a cement truck struck him when he was 11, leaving him with severe injuries. Doctors considered amputating both legs, he said. He lcredited his recovery with helping steer him towards comedy, after his father encouraged him to answer bullies with jokes rather than fighting.

The story comes from an old podcast appearance, not a new interview. Devine discussed the accident on Dax Shepard's Armchair Expert, in an episode published on 7 October 2019.

How the Cement Truck Accident Happened

Devine told Shepard that he and a friend were heading to a convenience store. His friend had crossed the road and shouted for him to follow. Devine took the call as a sign that the road was clear.

'My buddy was across the street and yelled, "Come on!" And I took that as "the coast is clear, come on,"' he said.

He recalled cement trucks travelling along the road in both directions. After trucks passed uphill on his side, he set off with his bicycle and was struck by one coming downhill.

'Taken under the wheel, spit out. Broke everything from my waist down besides my right femur and then crushed everything from the knees down and took it all my skin off,' Devine said.

He said the crash left him in a medically induced coma for two weeks. He also recalled a collapsed lung, while doctors considered whether both legs would need to be amputated.

'It hurt a lot, even with all the drugs,' he said. Devine recalled that his father, whom he had rarely seen cry, was shaking and bawling beside his bed. 'That's when I knew it was real.'

People magazine published its report on 7 October 2019, the day the podcast episode was released. Devine said he underwent 26 surgeries between sixth grade and his first year of high school.

How Recovery Helped Lead Devine to Comedy

Devine said the accident and recovery kept him from many activities. He recalled being teased while using a wheelchair. His father advised him to defend himself with words because he could not fight back physically.

'I think that's kind of why I got into comedy,' Devine said. He recalled his father telling him: 'You can't get into fights so you gotta punch them back with your words, think of some funny things to say back to them.'

Devine said he took the advice seriously, writing possible insults and responses in notebooks before classmates mocked him. He recalled using the material for comebacks, laughing that people could not beat up a child in a wheelchair who could not defend himself.

The old podcast records how Devine understood that turning point years later: humour became a way to cope and stand up for himself.

Devine is known for the Pitch Perfect films and the television comedy Workaholics. He shared the account in his 2019 Armchair Expert interview.