Jenifer Lewis reveals she fell 10 feet off balcony in Africa with lion nearby: 'Nothing would move'

The "Black-ish" star revealed the harrowing incident for the first time: "My right hip took the impact, my shoulder went up against a stone."

Legendary actress Jenifer Lewis has revealed for the first time that she suffered serious injuries after falling 10 feet from a balcony in Africa nearly two years ago.

Journalist Robin Roberts teased a portion of her upcoming interview with Lewis on Tuesday's episode of Good Morning America, during which Lewis said she planned to retire and travel the world following the conclusion of her ABC sitcom Black-ish.

Her journey took her to the African Serengeti, where she was set to stay in a rural lodge with an infinity pool jutting out from a deck overlooking the landscape.

“When the sun sets in the Serengeti, there are no streetlights. It is pitch black. I was escorted to the lodge, my room, but I wasn’t given a tour. I should’ve been given tour. I laid out my safari clothes, and I saw the infinity pool out on my deck, so I went out. I was just taking in the fact that I was back in the Serengeti once again, and I'm walking, and all of a sudden — bam — I had fallen 10 feet into a dry ravine full of boulders and stones and sharp rocks."

Lewis remembered that there was a "space that was not sectioned off" from the rest of the deck, which video reportedly from the scene also showed. There was also footage of Lewis laying on the ground below the balcony she fell from, with a wild buffalo roaming "10 feet away" from where she landed.

"Of course, I was in shock. My right hip took the impact, my shoulder went up against a stone. A lightning bolt went through my mind’s eye right here. In pitch black, I didn’t know I was falling. Nothing would move. So, I laid there, I said, 'Move your body, baby, come on Jenny, move your body.' Then, I called for my friend, Lori. It was hard to even take a big breath to scream," Lewis continued.

Lewis also recalled her friend going to get help, and hearing a lion roar when she was left on her own.

"My last thought, because I am Jenifer Lewis, was, what a headline," she said with a laugh. "The king at the queen. Pieces of Jenifer Lewis’ body being flown back to the states."

Images shown during the preview saw Lewis recovering in a hospital room. She later recovered and resumed her career, having recently appeared on NBC's revival of Night Court and in a small role in Jennifer Lopez's self-funded musical movie This Is Me... Now.

Roberts' full sit-down with Lewis streams tonight at 8:30 p.m. ET on ABC News Live and later on Hulu.

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