Austin Butler Says He Once Lost His Sight Temporarily

Austin Butler is opening up about a series of frightening health scares, including a moment when he temporarily lost his vision mid-flight.

Austin Butler revealed that he once went temporarily blind while working on the 2023 film "The Bikeriders," attributing the episode to exhaustion and lack of sleep. But that wasn’t the only health challenge he faced in recent years.

The "Elvis" star recalled that during filming he woke up on a flight with a severe migraine and suddenly lost his sight. According to Butler, the blindness lasted several minutes. He told "Men's Health" in their September/October 2025 issue that he managed to will his vision back until it gradually returned.

Despite the scare, the 31-year-old — who also posed for the magazine — returned to set the following day, assuming it was simply caused by sleep deprivation.

Butler also described another medical crisis that followed his intense commitment to portraying Elvis Presley. After wrapping the Oscar-nominated film, he was hospitalized with what he described as intense, appendicitis-like pain.

His health struggles didn't end there. While promoting "Dune: Part Two," Butler developed severe pain in his foot. He explained that he walked with his toes curled for eight months to ease the discomfort, only to discover the problem was a tiny piece of glass lodged in his foot — about the size of a grain of rice.

Over time, Butler said he has learned to reduce the toll that his work takes on his body by putting less pressure on himself to stay in character. He credits actress Laura Dern with helping him find a healthier balance.

"It was like the whole room just quieted, and we connected on a soul level," he told the outlet about meeting Dern for the first time. "We felt like kindred spirits."

The "Jurassic Park" star – who Butler noted reminded him of his late mother, Lori Butler, who died from cancer in 2014 — encouraged him to understand that darker roles don't have to consume his personal life.