Alarming footage that surfaced online over the weekend has raised serious concerns about actress Tara Reid’s safety after she was filmed appearing disoriented while being taken from a Chicago-area hotel on a stretcher. The video, obtained by TMZ, shows the 50-year-old ‘American Pie’ star slumped in a wheelchair and struggling to speak coherently before paramedics moved her to a nearby hospital on Sunday, November 23.

Witnesses said Reid slipped from the chair at one point as security attempted to guide her through the hotel lobby. She was helped back into the seat before emergency responders placed her on a stretcher and transported her for medical attention. A spokesperson for Rosemont Public Safety told People that an ambulance had been called to the DoubleTree hotel for “a sick person.”

Reid later told TMZ that she believed her drink had been spiked. Her representative, in a statement to Daily Mail, confirmed she has filed a police report and is “cooperating fully with the investigation”, adding that she is recovering and “asks for privacy during this traumatic time”.

The incident

The viral footage and Reid’s subsequent claims have triggered widespread speculation about what happened inside the hotel’s bar. The actress said she arrived at the property late Saturday, went downstairs for a drink, and left her glass at the bar while stepping out for a cigarette. As she walked through the lobby, she recalled encountering a group of YouTubers, one of whom joined her outside.

Upon returning, she noticed a napkin placed over her drink – something she insists she did not do. She told TMZ that she removed the napkin and continued drinking, but the next thing she remembers is waking up in hospital eight hours later.

The person who filmed the lobby video told TMZ that before paramedics arrived, Reid was shouting, “You don’t know who I am. I am famous. I’m an actress.” 

Tara Reid recounts the ‘big blur’

In a separate appearance on TMZ Live, Reid elaborated on the ordeal, saying, “I just had a glass of wine and a cigarette and that was it... didn’t expect that to happen at all!”

She described the sequence of events leading up to her hospital admission, “So I got to the hotel, I checked in, and then I went downstairs to have a drink and have a cigarette… And I went back to the bar, and my drink was covered up with a napkin. And I thought, ‘that was weird,’ cause I never put that over my drink. And then I drank my drink and without even finishing my drink, I just passed out. And before I knew it, I was in the hospital, eight hours later.”

Reid said the hospital staff informed her she had been drugged but did not specify which substance was involved.

“No, they just said that, ‘You were drugged.’ That’s what they said. They said, ‘you got drugged last night at the bar.’”

She admitted the hours in hospital were a haze and said the presence of a non-English-speaking woman watching over her led to confusion, “I mean I had someone, a lady sitting next to the room with me… At one point I thought I was in Mexico… I was so confused what was happening.”

Questions raised over hospital procedures

During the interview, concerns were raised about the absence of toxicology testing despite Reid being taken to hospital unconscious. Reid said she “didn’t ask” and remained unsure about what tests – if any – were performed.

When pressed about filing a police report or pursuing surveillance footage from the hotel, Reid responded:

“Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely… this just happened. I just got back last night, so I mean this is all just happening right now. It’s really scary, you guys.”

She added that she was grateful the incident occurred in a public place, “You could get raped… a lot of things could go really, really, really wrong.”

Past struggles and recent personal changes

Reid has previously spoken openly about her history with substance abuse. She sought treatment in 2008 at Promises Malibu, later telling, “Rehab saved my life.”

Although her past was brought up in the TMZ discussion, Reid insisted she had consumed only one glass of wine and no hard liquor that night.

The episode also comes shortly after reports that Reid ended her six-year relationship with music producer Nathan Montpetit-Howar after feeling the relationship had “run its course”.

Best known for her breakout role as Vicky Lathum in ‘American Pie’, Reid also starred in ‘The Big Lebowski’, ‘Josie & The Pussycats’ and the ‘Sharknado’ series. She has appeared in several reality shows, including ‘Celebrity Big Brother UK’ and ‘Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test’.