Joe Manganiello Reveals Massive Dragon Tattoo Covering Surgical Scars

Actor Joe Manganiello has unveiled a massive, three-foot-long dragon tattoo covering the right side of his body. The 49-year-old True Blood star said the artwork helped him conceal scars from major surgery and regain a sense of control over his own body.

Manganiello shared photos on Instagram documenting the tattoo’s creation, from the initial black outline to the finished design featuring shades of red and orange.

In his new memoir, Bloodlines, the actor recounts his years-long battle with an autoimmune disease that nearly cost him his life. In 2016, he also required emergency surgery on his intestines.

“In Chapter Four of the book, I compared my battle with the disease to my body sending out knights to fight a Western dragon that didn’t exist. When the soldiers couldn’t find their enemy, they started punching holes in my body,” the actor wrote.

He explained that the idea of getting his first-ever tattoo came to him after the surgery.

“The decision to cover my surgical scars with a three-foot dragon running along the right side of my body was my attempt to reclaim at least a little control over my life and tell my body that it was time to stop attacking the dragon. After all, the Eastern dragon was me,” Manganiello shared.

Last week, the actor also posted shocking photos from the hospital taken after he underwent a colectomy, or surgery to remove part of his large intestine. He revealed that he lost weight rapidly following the procedure.

“In the first few days after my colon was removed, my weight began to plummet. By the end of the two weeks following surgery, I had lost around 60 pounds,” he said.

Manganiello also shared a close-up photo of his abdomen following a second operation to restore continuity of the digestive tract through an anastomosis. During the procedure, doctors reversed his ostomy and reconnected the remaining sections of his intestine.