Fans of actor Ving Rhames fans have a hunch that there is something very off with actor.
Several people on social media were left questioning if everything is OK with Rhames, 65, after he appeared in a video promoting the Las Vegas Brushfire Barbershop on Instagram.
The star appeared in a pair of gray jeans, a matching gray dashiki, and a hat as he revealed that he recently relocated to the desert city. Rhames, known for his bald aesthetic, stood beside a barber known as Jay Skills as he shared, “I moved here three weeks ago, and I’ve been coming here four times.”
Though the actor did not appear disheveled, people could not help but notice a few suspected telltale signs of a possible underlying issue. “Ain’t no way that’s Ving,” exclaimed one person online.
Their speculations ran the gamut from addiction, mental health, and serious health ailments. For starters, one person wrote, “Ving eyes so wide, he’s on that stuff.”
Someone else believed that “Ving looks disoriented,” as they asked, “Is he ok?” Another observer remarked, “He seems not mentally himself.”
Several others noticed that he painted each of his pinky nails red, which spurred reactions comparing the actor to the character Holiday Heart that he portrayed in 2000.
A few others said the jarring appearance was a stark contrast to his role as Melvin in “Baby Boy.”
A fourth person typed, “Ving don’t look too good.. Age and illness are two different things. He looks like he’s had a stroke or sumn.”
Rhames has not made headlines for any health-related issues, but his grief from the loss of his mother in 2023 has been evident. Five months after her death, Rhames appeared on “The Stephen A. Smith Show,” where he broke down in tears talking about the loss.
Through tears, Rhames said losing his mother, “really changed how I look at the world. And so now, I thank her for all the sacrifices… she gave me all she had to give.”
That same year, “Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One” fans expressed worry when he did not appear on the red carpet with his co-stars.
On Reddit, someone suggested, “Have you seen the movie? The guy is basically immobile. I wouldn’t be surprised if he uses a wheelchair irl. Travel must be a major PITA.”
A few supporters theorized that age and disinterest in the press run were at the root of his lack of public appearances.
Whatever the case, Rhames has been steadily working, although three of his gigs in the past five years have been for voiceover work. He only appeared on camera once last year in the film “The Instigators.”
Amid the renewed speculation, others chose to focus on hoping for the best. A supporter commented, “Let’s just pray for Ving and not sit here and talk down on him we don’t know what’s going on …. Let’s do better.”
A second like-minded individual wrote, “What social media did to the late Chadwick Boseman was not long ago. Let’s pray and not question this legend.”
