The Tragedy Of Catfish Host Nev Schulman Explained

On Sunday, August 4, 2024, Nev Schulman, host of "Catfish: The TV Show," spent the day fishing with his family. He called it a "day full of love and wonder in the way only calm days in nature with family can be" in an Instagram post. But less than 24 hours later he found himself in a Long Island, New York hospital dealing with a potentially life-altering accident. "It's true what they say — life can change in an instant," the 39-year-old wrote. That Monday afternoon, Schulman was on the way to pick up his 2-year-old son from school on his electric bike when a truck hit him.

"I was alone and unconscious," he wrote. "And then conscious." Schulman initially believed he was okay and even imagined he might be able to go for an upcoming run that week. He may have been one of the people with a gruesome injury they didn't realize they had, as he would later learn the impact had left him with a broken neck. After several days at Stony Brook Southampton Hospital's intensive care unit, he was back at home and facing a slow recovery.

Nev Schulman rose to prominence by being catfished, believing the person he'd become deeply involved with online was someone else. This isn't that unusual of an occurrence — football player Manti Te'o is possibly the most famous victim. In Schulman's case, though, it was all being filmed for a documentary that his older brother Ariel and their friend Henry Joost created in 2010 titled "Catfish." Nev later told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette it was "a life experience that was intense and emotional and dramatic ... You have to look out for yourself a little bit more and protect yourself."

Schulman parlayed this into hosting a television show for MTV, "Catfish: The TV Show." The series began in 2012, and it followed the host as he helped others who had been fooled online by potential romantic partners. He has since also begun hosting the Vanity Fair program "Hoaxes and Cons" on Facebook. Over the years, Schulman has used his celebrity and love of exercise to help others by participating in various charity events, which, tragically, he may not be able to continue for some time.

Besides hosting various television programs, Nev Schulman was a finalist in Season 29 of the ABC show "Dancing with the Stars" in 2020, coming in second place with his dancing partner Jenna Johnson. The next year, he hosted and performed at the Dance Against Cancer benefit at Lincoln Center. The event, in partnership with the American Cancer Society, raises money for cancer research and to help cancer patients.

Schuman has also been a member of Team for Kids, which raises money for New York Road Runners, a non-profit organization in New York City that hosts the NYC Marathon and offers running-related programs for area youth. "Every mile and race I've run with TFK has been incredibly special and inspiring," he wrote on Facebook in 2023. It's not likely Schulman will be running or dancing again in the near future. Following the bike accident in Long Island, Schulman suffered "stable fractures" of his "C5 and C6" neck vertebrae, which help support the neck and head. Thankfully, he's not paralyzed.

According to Nev Schulman's Instagram post, his doctors were worried his hands had been affected by the fractures to his neck, but they eventually determined that his outlook for total recovery looks good. Schulman, wearing a cervical collar and grimacing in pain, had to be helped to stand by hospital staff in one of the videos he posted. He later walked slowly down a hospital corridor for exercise while high-fiving the medical center staff. Some might say Schulman was lucky his accident didn't happen a few weeks earlier since July is considered the most dangerous month to go to the hospital. It's called the "July Effect" because it's when new doctors fresh out of medical school traditionally begin their residencies. 

"It's hard to feel sorry for myself when I hear from the doctors about how many people with similar injuries will never walk again," Schulman wrote. He is now back at home with his wife, Laura Perlongo, and three children: 2-year-old Cy; 5-year-old Beau, and 7-year-old Cleo. "I'm lucky to be here, alive, standing and hugging my family, projected to make a full recovery," Schulman wrote.

Nev Schulman's wife, freelance creative director Laura Perlongo, also took to Instagram to discuss the ups and downs of her husband's hospital stay and recovery. On Tuesday, August 13, 2024, she wrote that has been "caught in the nonlinear blur of trauma" since the accident but has been surrounded by "love and support." Perlongo said she's been busy dealing with Schulman's doctors and tracking his medication while juggling their three children's needs.

"The road to recovery has already had its share of scary realizations and you might see me crying in the streets here and there, but really I just want to say that I appreciate the love," she wrote. "Nev and I are very lucky and know it." She personally thanked the neurosurgeon, Dr. Harry Mushlin, who performed spinal surgery on Schulman while "being so cool, calm and reassuring today, pre and post op." She also thanked the hospital's nursing staff "who shared such an intense week with us in the ICU."

Back in March 2023, Nev Schulman described his typical day to Us Weekly magazine, which began "with a kid crawling into bed or prepping breakfast for the fam" followed by a run, since he "always" has races to train for. Then there was vacuuming to catch up on "while the baby naps," and spending time with his son Beau at his gymnastics class later in the day. He told the outlet he and Perlongo share parenting duties. The pair met on Instagram in 2015 and married two years later.

Schulman's post-accident days likely include lots of rest and possibly physical therapy and rehabilitation. Recovery from a broken neck can take from several weeks to months, according to Medical News Today. And hopefully, with the love and care of his wife, children, friends, and family, he'll make a swift recovery. On his Instagram post, Schulman wrote that he's "really starting to understand the meaning of gratitude."