This is the mangled wreckage of Morgan Freeman's car after the horrifying crash which left the actor fighting for his life.

The 71-year-old was airlifted to hospital with multiple broken bones following the accident in Mississippi. 

The Oscar-winning star and a female passenger were cut free from the vehicle after it veered off the highway and flipped over several times before ending up in a ditch.

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Mangled wreckage: The horrific car crash scene which left Morgan Freeman with multiple broken bones. The actor's body (circled) had to be cut free from the wreckage

Freeman was driving a 1997 Nissan Maxima when the smash happened at 11.30pm on Sunday night near his home in Mississippi, where he lives with his wife Myrna.

Emergency crews flew Freeman and his passenger, Demaris Meyer, to a hospital in Memphis more than 100 miles away.

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Injured: Morgan Freeman had to be cut free from the car wreck (pictured with wife Myrna)

The star suffered a broken arm, broken elbow and shoulder damage in the crash and spent four and a half hours on the operating table.

'Morgan is doing well after his surgery to reconnect nerves and repair damage in his left arm and hand,' his spokeswoman Donna Lee said.

'The surgery lasted four and a half hours.

'He's visiting with family this morning . As of this morning he's up and walking around and looking forward to his release in a few days.'

A hospital spokesman had initially described his condition as ‘serious'. 

Freeman, who won an Oscar for best supporting actor in Million Dollar Baby in 2005, appears in the latest Batman film, The Dark Knight, which was released in Britain two weeks ago.

He is the latest cast member of  the Batman film to be hit with bad fortune.

Tragedy hit the film when Heath Ledger died of a drug overdose while filming the role of Joker.

The actor has been tipped for a posthumous Oscar for his critically-acclaimed performance.

The 'curse' of the Dark knight first struck when a technician was killed in a stunt car crash while the film was in production.

Leading man Christian Bale was the next to be hit by bad luck when he was arrested for assault on the eve of the London premiere.

There is still no information on Freeman's passenger Miss Meyer’s condition and her link to the star of Driving Miss Daisy and The Shawshank Redemption is not yet known.

A Mississippi Highway Patrol spokesman said Miss Meyer, of Memphis, owned the car Freeman was driving.

Passenger: Demaris Meyer was flown to a hospital in Memphis. Her condition is unknown as yet

The wreckage was swiftly removed from the crash scene for investigation, but debris from the vehicle was found strewn across the bank.

The car's rear view mirror was found amongst the grassy bank alongside the highway.

He said there was ‘no indication that either alcohol or drugs were involved,’ and both had been wearing seatbelts.

The police refused to comment on reports that Freeman had fallen asleep at the wheel.

Clay McFerrin, editor of the Sun Sentinel in Charleston, Mississippi, said he arrived soon after the accident happened on Sunday night. 

Mr McFerrin said Freeman ‘was lucid, conscious.

'He was talking, joking with some of the rescue workers at one point’

He said bystanders tried to take photographs at the rescue scene, prompting Freeman to joke: ‘No freebies, no freebies.’

'They had to use the Jaws of Life (hydraulic cutters) to extract him from the vehicle,' he said.

Crash debris: The rear view mirror lies in the grassy bank when the car crashed

Freeman's other major roles have included parts in Driving Miss Daisy and Shawshank Redemption, for each of which he received Oscar nominations, and Bruce Almighty.

Freeman lives in Mississippi in a 126-acre ranch near Charleston and also has a home in New York.

He has a daughter, Morgana, from his previous marriage to Jeanette Bradshaw, which ended in 1979.

Crash scene: The accident happened near the actor's home in Mississippi

He adopted Miss Bradshaw's daughter, Deena.

Memphis-born Freeman has two sons, Alfonso and Saifoulaye, from earlier relationships.

Freeman is due to star as Nelson Mandela in the Human Factor which is currently in pre-production.

The actor once commented that moving back to the area he grew up was 'one of the smartest moves I've made in life'.

He said: 'My aim in life, when I graduated from high school, was to get out of Mississippi.

'I started coming back in about 1979, because my parents moved back, which I couldn't understand. What in the world would make you come back here? It took me about 20 years to figure that out.'

Hospitalised: Freeman was rushed to the Regional Medical Center in Memphis

Batman's right-hand man: Freeman with Christian Bale in the latest blockbuster hit The Dark Knight