Comedian and actor Tracy Morgan, 57, has found great joy in giving back, recently donating over $200,000 to the Hackensack Meridian Health Foundation to support vulnerable households. This significant contribution helped feed 19,000 families, as Morgan exclusively shared with People while promoting his new Paramount+ sitcom, Crutch.
“It’s fun to get the love and support, but it’s better when you give it back,” he said, reflecting on his career. “That’s what I want to teach my children. More than a great education, I just want [Maven] and her brothers to be empathic.”
The former Saturday Night Live star’s current priorities are centered on giving back and his family. Morgan emphasized this focus, stating, “At this point in my life, spending [time] with my children. That’s it. I don’t care about nothing else in this world.”
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His children include his 12-year-old daughter, Maven Sonae (with ex-wife Megan Wollover), and his sons, Gitrid, 39, Malcolm, 38, and Tracy Jr., 34 (with his late ex-wife, Sabina Morgan, who passed away from cancer in 2016).
Morgan’s perspective shifted after a serious 2014 highway accident that killed his friend, James McNair, and severely injured Morgan. He remembers his grandmother’s words after he woke up in the hospital: “Just when you thought you was doing bad, there’s people out there doing worse,” which gave him perspective. He recounted, “So I feel fortunate.”
This same feeling of gratitude guides his professional choices. “Anything with a heart. If it doesn’t have a heart, I don’t wanna do it,” he stated.
Tracy Morgan is set to star in two upcoming projects.
He currently appears in Crutch, a spinoff of the CBS comedy The Neighborhood (streaming now on Paramount+). Morgan plays Francois “Frank” Crutchfield, a flamboyant but well-liked Harlem shop owner whose life changes when his adult children—a highbrow son and a free-spirited daughter—return to live at home.
“Prepping my whole life, man. I’ve got kids. My real wife died, Sabina. She passed away eight years ago. I … knew this role. I know this guy,” Morgan said of his role in an interview with “CBS Mornings“.
Next, Morgan will reunite with his former 30 Rock costar, Tina Fey, who is producing a new NBC comedy, The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins. Morgan will star as a disgraced former football player opposite Daniel Radcliffe. Speaking about his project choices, Morgan says, “You gotta have fun.”
Looking back on his career, Morgan finds his work more fulfilling than ever. He commented, “I love everything that I’ve done.”
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He added that as he’s gotten older, the experience makes the work “that much fun” and “even better.”
Morgan used a metaphor to describe his perspective: “You can’t see how big the mountain is if you’re right up on it. You have to step back and look at it and go, ‘Wow, that mountain is big.’ Now I see how big this mountain is. Now I’m gonna climb it. And I’m gonna climb it just because it’s there.”
Morgan is focused on living well these days. He maintains a daily routine of walking two and a half miles and training regularly. He has also transitioned from taking Ozempic to Mounjaro.
Reflecting on his outlook, he remarked, “I’m just trying to live good… I’m not worried about how I’m [going to] die. I’m just trying to worry about how I live. I’m living good.”
When asked what he would tell his younger self, Morgan’s advice was simple: “Keep doing what you’re doing. You’re doing fine.”
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