Smith’s first heart smart feast

Filmmaker Kevin Smith has plenty to be grateful for this Thanksgiving — starting with being alive.

The “Clerks” director survived a major heart attack in February that he thought was the end. Almost nine months later, he’s ready to celebrate his first vegan Thanksgiving.

According to Smith, 48, his near-death experience changed his diet, but his daughter lured him into vegan culture.

“She brings you into the vegan cult and they don’t tell you you’re going to become a spokesmodel,” Smith (photo) told the Daily News. “Then once I dropped a bunch of weight, the kid was like, ‘Now you have to bring other people into this’ and I was like, ‘What is this, a Ponzi scheme?’ And she said, ‘You’re living as an example.’ ”

Smith said he weighs 198 pounds today, but was about 60 pounds heavier when he had a cardiac arrest. When he suffered his heart attack, which he said he had a 20% chance to survive, Smith was ready to go.

“When I was on the (operating) table ... I was like ‘Well, if this is the end, you had such a great life and unfortunately it did stop at 47, but look what you did? You had a family, everything has been wonderful. Don’t be that d--k that stayed at the party long after everyone else because you were having a good time.’ ”

Smith said he didn’t vow to climb mountains or write “a bucket list” if he survived his neardeath experience.

“It never occurred to be to start praying or bargaining with God because I knew, (he’d say) “You made ‘Dogma,’ you go to Hell,’ ” he joked.