Trace Adkins Recalls Being Shot at by His Ex-Wife During Argument; Says She ‘Took it a Little Far’
Trace Adkins Recalls Being Shot at by His Ex-Wife During Argument; Says She ‘Took it a Little Far’
Morning Honey Staff Wed, July 29, 2026 at 4:45 PM UTC
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Trace Adkins details how he survived after being shot at point-blank range. (Image Credits: Instagram/@traceadkins)
Country Singer Trace Adkins has had four marriages, but his third marriage with Julie Curtis nearly cost him his life. During an episode of the This Past Weekend with Theo Von podcast, he detailed that a domestic dispute with his wife over three decades ago escalated to the point where she shot him.
He recalled surviving being shot at from point-blank range and joked that Curtis thought he was “indestructible.” But the American Made singer chose to forgive her because he believed that she meant no harm and was unaware of what the gun could have done.
Trace Adkins Opened Up About Being Shot by His Ex-Wife
On July 28, Trace Adkins appeared on the This Past Weekend with Theo Von podcast, where he talked about his career and love. When the host asked if one of his wives had shot him, he nodded and said, “Yeah, that took it a little far, I thought. That was just that was uncalled for. That was totally uncalled for.”
He shared that Julie Curtis, his third wife, wanted him to leave, but he was not going to leave. “I’d never seen her hold a gun. I’d never seen her shoot a gun. I knew she had one, but I’d never seen her use it,” Adkins recalled. “I mean, I’ve had a bunch of guns, still have a bunch of guns, and shoot them, you know, pretty pretty often, but I’d never seen her do that.”
Theo Von asked whether she said anything when she pulled the trigger or was furious at him; he replied, “She was mad.” The 64-year-old continued, “She put it under my left arm, and the bullet came out under my right arm. So, it went straight through.” He had his hand out as he was reaching to her, asking Curtis to give him the firearm, but she shot him.
When asked what it felt like to be shot, the singer explained that during that “serious” situation, “your body protects you,” putting him into shock, not feeling anything. He noted, “I just remember getting up off the floor and then taking a few steps and then going back down, and that’s all I remember.”
“It went under this arm, came out this arm. So it went straight through. It went straight through my heart and both my lungs,” the Every Light in the House singer explained. “It was a kill shot.” He shared that he survived the shot because it was shot from such a close range.
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Adkins shared that the doctor told him that the shot could have been fatal if it had been fired from a distance and had given the bullet “time to mushroom.” He joked that healing from the open-heart surgery was difficult because of the complications. And it took him another six months to become healthy.
Nevertheless, he did not have hard feelings for his wife. Trace Adkins believed that she did not mean to shoot him in the first place. He claimed, “I just always felt like I don’t think she meant to do it, man. I don’t think I just don’t think that she thought it was going to hurt me. She thought I was indestructible.”
‘It’s the Broken Hearts That Left the Deepest Scars’
In 2022, sitting exclusively with People, Trace Adkins felt “fortunate” after surviving the gunshot wound in 1994. He detailed that the argument commenced over his drinking, which quickly turned violent, leading him to the emergency room to have open-heart surgery.
He said, “It wasn’t my time to go,” but he still has to visit a heart doctor for checkups regularly. He continued that being shot at was “painful,” but the physical pain of the broken bones, surgeries, or the bullet did not bother him.
Adkins added, “I have a high tolerance for it. It’s the broken hearts that left the deepest scars.” He acknowledged that he had made blunders in his life and has paid for them, as he tries not to repeat the same mistakes again. “It’s been a wild ride, and I’m fortunate to still be here,” the singer concluded.
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Source: “AOL Entertainment”
