Whoopi Goldberg reveals she almost died in video message after month long absence

Whoopi Goldberg hasn't appeared on The View since February 5. At the time, some fans speculated that she was secretly hired to host the Academy Awards on February 24. After all, the event didn't have a host booked for the first time in 30 years, after Kevin Hart backed out due to a controversy over homophobic tweets, and Goldberg has hosted the Oscars four times.

However, The View co-host Joy Behar shut down those conspiracy theories on February 20, informing viewers that Goldberg was sick. "There are all these conspiracy theories on the Internet that she’s not really sick and she’s secretly preparing to host the Oscars," said Behar. "She’s not even well enough to host this show right now, let alone the Oscars."

After a month-long absence, Goldberg released a video message from her home, which aired on The View this morning. "I am here," said the 63-year-old actress and comedian. "I am up and moving around, not as fast as I'd like to be, but I am OK. I'm not dead."

In the pre-taped message, Goldberg explains that she has been battling septic pneumonia in both lungs. By itself, pneumonia is a serious illness. Combined with sepsis, it can be life threatening. Known as the 'silent killer,' sepsis is a potentially life-threatening condition in which the body fights a severe infection that spread through the bloodstream. Normally the body releases chemicals to fight the infection. When sepsis occurs, the body attacks its own organs.

The Academy-Award-winning actress revealed that she almost died, but has made a strong recovery. "I came very, very close to leaving the Earth. Good news: I didn't," said Goldberg. "Thank you for all of your good wishes, all of the wonderful things that people have been saying. Even people who aren’t huge fans of mine have actually been saying nice thing about me."

Then the comic joked that "all that is gonna change" when she returns to The View, drawing a laugh from the live studio audience. "Ladies, I cannot wait to see y'all," said Goldberg. "This has been interesting, and I'll tell you all about it when we're all at the table." Back on set, co-hosts Joy Behar, Meghan McCain, Sunny Hostin Abby Huntsman and Ana Navarro wished her a speedy recovery.

Known for the movies Sister Act, Ghost and The Color Purple, Goldberg joined the The View as a moderator in 2007, replacing Rosie O'Donnell. In 2018, she starred in the Tyler Perry romantic comedy Nobody's Fool alongside Tiffany Haddish, plus the comedy-drama Furlough, alongside Tessa Thompson. Goldberg is one of only fifteen entertainers to win an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar and a Tony, achieving "EGOT" status.

The symptoms of sepsis are similar to the flu, and can be remembered with this hand acronym: S for shivering, fever or feeling very cold, E for extreme pain or discomfort, P for pale or discolored skin, S for sleepy, difficult to wake up or confused, I for 'I feel like I might die,' and S for shortness of breath.