Celebrities Who Got Real About Struggling With Alcohol Addiction
Bradley Cooper
Bradley Cooper has been sober for over a decade, but the actor admits his life once revolved around alcohol. Reflecting on that period, he told The Hollywood Reporter in 2015: “I wouldn’t have been able to have access to myself or other people, or even been able to take in other people, if I hadn’t changed my life.” Cooper credits sobriety with allowing him to build real relationships and care for his father during his final days.
Ben Affleck
Ben Affleck has been candid about his battle with alcoholism, entering rehab multiple times, most notably in 2018. After completing a 40-day program, he shared on Instagram: “Battling any addiction is a lifelong and difficult struggle. Because of that, one is never really in or out of treatment. It is a full-time commitment.” Affleck has spoken about how his openness is meant to encourage others to seek help without shame. His willingness to discuss setbacks and progress publicly helps dismantle stigma.
Daniel Radcliffe
Growing up as Harry Potter made Daniel Radcliffe a household name, but off-screen he struggled with alcohol. In a 2012 ShortList interview, he admitted: “The drinking was unhealthy and damaging to my body and my social life … I had become a recluse at 20.” Radcliffe revealed that he even drank before going on set and leaned on co-star Gary Oldman, who also faced addiction. Though sober now, he acknowledges the challenges: “I had to stop myself. And stopping has shown me a world of happiness that I didn’t think was possible.
Lana Del Rey
Singer Lana Del Rey began drinking heavily as a teenager. In a 2012 British GQ interview, she revealed: “That’s really why I got sent to boarding school aged 14—to get sober. I would drink every day. I would drink alone.” By 18, she was in a rehab center for drug and alcohol addiction. Del Rey has been open about how dangerous her early drinking habits were, admitting: “I knew it was a problem when I liked it more than I liked doing anything else.” Her recovery helped shape her artistry and career.
Lindsay Lohan
Lindsay Lohan’s struggles with alcohol were intensely public, from rehab stints to court-mandated monitoring. In a 2013 interview with Oprah Winfrey, she admitted: “Alcohol was a gateway to other things for me … I tried cocaine with alcohol.” Despite attempts to stay sober, Lohan relapsed on her reality show in 2014, highlighting the ongoing challenges of recovery. Earlier, in 2010, she was forced to wear an alcohol-detection bracelet by court order. While her journey has been turbulent, Lohan’s honesty about relapse has shown how recovery is not linear but requires persistence and support.
Brad Pitt
Brad Pitt revealed in a 2017 GQ interview that he decided to quit drinking after years of heavy use. “I mean, we have a winery. I enjoy wine very, very much, but I just ran it to the ground,” he admitted. He added, “I could drink a Russian under the table with his own vodka. I was a professional. I was good.” Pitt credits therapy and meditation for helping him heal, and his decision to leave alcohol behind has allowed him to refocus on family and personal growth.
Tom Holland
Tom Holland revealed in 2023 that he quit drinking after realizing alcohol had become a dependency. After attempting “Dry January,” he admitted, “I was really, really struggling and I started to really worry that maybe I had an alcohol problem.” He stayed sober for six months and realized, “By the time I got to June 1, I was the happiest I’ve ever been in my life.” Holland has is now sober and even launched his own non-alcoholic beer brand. Well, recovery inspired him to embrace a healthier lifestyle.
Carrie Fisher
Carrie Fisher used humor to confront painful truths about her addictions. In her 2008 memoir Wishful Drinking, she wrote: “If you have the expectation that you’re going to be happy throughout your life … you have the makings of a classic drug addict or alcoholic.” Fisher openly discussed how alcohol became a coping mechanism and how it worsened her struggles. Despite her honesty and resilience, Fisher tragically passed away in 2016, with reports suggesting relapse played a role. Her candor, however, continues to inspire those facing similar battles with substance abuse.
Naomi Campbell
Supermodel Naomi Campbell has been open about her struggles in the early 2000s. Speaking to Vogue, she admitted, “The time between 1998 and 2005 was especially bad… There were times I thought I wouldn’t survive. I drank too much so I joined Alcoholics Anonymous to get and stay sober.” She has since become a member of Narcotics Anonymous as well. At the Fortune Most Powerful Women International Summit in 2017, she reminded others: “Addiction and alcoholism doesn’t discriminate.” Campbell’s journey reveals the resilience behind her glamorous public image.
Robert Downey Jr.
Robert Downey Jr.’s struggles with addiction nearly derailed his career in the 1990s, when he faced multiple arrests and even served time in prison. Determined to turn his life around, he entered treatment and has been sober for years. Speaking to Vanity Fair in 2014, he explained: “Job one is get out of that cave. A lot of people do get out but don’t change… come through the crucible forged into a stronger metal.” His comeback story remains one of Hollywood’s greatest redemption arcs, proof that sobriety can fuel a second chance.
Colin Farrell
Colin Farrell’s descent into alcohol and drugs nearly consumed him. After finishing Miami Vice, he confessed: “I didn’t want to live.” Rehab helped him recover, mend broken relationships, and redirect his career. Even years later, Farrell checked into a treatment facility in 2018 to prevent relapse, showing his continued vigilance. Speaking to Independent, he reflected: “It is certainly not abnormal what I went through … it’s a garden variety tale of an addict, I suppose.” Farrell’s story is both raw and relatable.
Edie Falco
Edie Falco has been sober for nearly three decades. She once admitted: “I had my last drink in 1992, and I feel like that was a different lifetime.” Falco even drew from her past to portray an addict on Nurse Jackie, saying to Denver Post: “I’m also grateful that we’re portraying addiction the way it really is—irrational and so often disappointing.” For Falco, acting didn’t tempt relapse but instead deepened her gratitude for recovery, using her lived experience to fuel authenticity on screen.
Rob Lowe
Rob Lowe has been sober for more than three decades and credits recovery with saving his life. In 2015, he received the Spirit of Sobriety Award, where he shared: “Being in recovery has given me everything of value that I have in my life… integrity, honesty, fearlessness, faith, a relationship with God, and most of all gratitude.” Lowe has said his career and family are directly tied to sobriety, and that recovery isn’t just about quitting drinking; it’s about rebuilding life from the ground up.
Mel Gibson
Mel Gibson has long acknowledged his battle with alcohol, which at times made global headlines. After a DUI arrest in 2006, he sought treatment and later spoke to The Fix in 2016 about the stark reality of quitting: “They say there’s only three options: You go insane, you die, or you quit.” Gibson’s journey shows the harsh truths of long-term alcoholism and the devastating consequences when it goes untreated. Despite the controversies tied to his addiction, Gibson has continued seeking recovery, openly admitting that it’s a fight he cannot ignore.
Zac Efron
Zac Efron has openly tied his substance use to the pressures of fame. Reflecting on his partying lifestyle while filming Neighbors, he told Hollywood Reporter: “It was more or less every single day … I couldn’t control it.” In 2013, he entered rehab twice, later crediting therapy and Alcoholics Anonymous for helping him reclaim his life. He admitted: “Addiction is a never-ending struggle, but it’s especially humiliating when mistakes are so public.” Today, Efron embraces sobriety as a path to honesty and fulfillment, encouraging others not to shy away from seeking help.
Lucy Hale
Lucy Hale, known for Pretty Little Liars, decided to quit alcohol after years in the party scene. In January 2025, she celebrated three years of sobriety with an Instagram post, writing: “Since choosing to abstain, I’ve experienced moments that can only be described as pure miracles and magic.” Hale expressed deep gratitude for the support she’s received, showing how personal strength and community can transform life after addiction.
Elizabeth Taylor
Elizabeth Taylor was one of the first celebrities to publicly seek treatment for addiction, checking into the Betty Ford Clinic in 1983. She later said: “Not being drunk is the only way I’m going to stay alive.” Her diary entries from rehab captured the pain of withdrawal: “My heart feels big and pounding … Oh God, I am so, so tired.” Taylor battled alcohol and painkiller addiction for decades, often struggling on film sets. By sharing her journey, she helped destigmatize rehab for other stars.
Robin Williams
Robin Williams often turned his struggles into comedy, but his words revealed the deeper pain of addiction. In a 2006 interview with Diane Sawyer, he explained: “It’s [addiction] not caused by anything, it’s just there. It lays in wait for the time when you think, ‘It’s fine now, I’m OK.’ Then the next thing you know, it’s not OK.” Williams quit drugs in 1982 after John Belushi’s overdose but continued battling alcohol on and off. His tragic 2014 death came just after he re-entered rehab, a sobering reminder of the lifelong grip addiction can hold.
Joe Manganiello
Joe Manganiello has been candid about facing addiction at a young age. In 2015, he told Haute Living, “I battled with addiction at a young age and got to the other side of that. It’s an ongoing battle.” In 2018, while accepting the Spirit of Sobriety Award, he recalled: “Sixteen years ago I crashed and washed ashore on the banks of sobriety.” Manganiello has worked tirelessly to dismantle the stigma around alcoholism.
Kit Harington
Game of Thrones star Kit Harington revealed that before sobriety, it was “physically and emotionally impossible for me not to drink again.” In an interview with GQ Hype, he said he’s “lucky” to have gotten clean before becoming a father. Harington explained, “The fact that I am proud of getting sober is in and of itself a mark of being an entirely different person.” Sobriety, he says, has also improved his work: “Now, every set I step onto… I’m proud of, because I know I put everything into it.
Tobey Maguire
Tobey Maguire has been sober for decades and credits Alcoholics Anonymous with helping him stay clean. In a 2003 Playboy interview, he explained: “It’s just all practical. There are no holes in the program. It’s so, so simple. I come in, I ask for help. It has totally changed my life.” The Spider-Man star has largely kept his personal life private, but his openness about recovery shows how straightforward honesty and support groups can be the foundation of a successful, long-term sobriety.
Drew Barrymore
Drew Barrymore has been candid about her struggles with addiction from a very young age. The actress entered rehab at just 13 years old after years of substance abuse and alcohol dependence during her early Hollywood career. Sobriety, she has said, gave her a second chance at life. “It’s a miracle that I’m alive,” Barrymore admitted in a 2018 interview. “I tried to kill myself at 14. I was institutionalized, and it changed my life, and I got sober and I stayed sober.” Today, she uses her platform to speak openly about her past, offering hope to others facing similar battles.
Gerard Butler
Gerard Butler entered rehab before his prescription pill addiction could worsen. In a 2012 Men’s Journal interview, the actor reflected on 15 years of sobriety: “Maybe a stronger person wouldn’t have needed to go, but I’m glad I did it. I’ve made a s-load of wrong decisions in my life. But I know I’ve made some right ones as well.” For Butler, rehab was not a sign of weakness but a step toward reclaiming control, proving that seeking help early can prevent deeper struggles.
Anthony Hopkins
Sir Anthony Hopkins has been sober for nearly five decades. Days before his 87th birthday, he shared a powerful Instagram message: “I was having such fun, but then I realized I was in big, big trouble because I couldn’t remember anything and I was driving a car drunk out of my skull.” He recalled reaching out for help: “On that fatal day, I phoned up a group of people like me—alcoholic. And that was it. Sober.” Hopkins says he’s had “more fun these 49 years than ever.”
Matthew Perry
The late Friends star was always open about his struggles with alcohol and prescription drugs. In his 2022 memoir Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing, Perry revealed that at the height of his addiction, he was taking up to 55 Vicodin a day and had been to rehab 15 times. Despite his challenges, Perry worked tirelessly to help others battling addiction, even opening a sober-living facility called Perry House. “What I’m most proud of is if someone comes up to me and says, ‘I can’t stop drinking. Can you help me?’ I can say yes and follow up and do it,” he said in a 2013 interview. “When I die, I don’t want Friends to be the first thing that’s mentioned—I want that to be the first thing that’s mentioned.”
Kristin Davis
Sex and the City star Kristin Davis has been sober throughout her time in the spotlight. In 2010, she told Health magazine, “I’m a recovering alcoholic. I’ve never hid it, but I’ve been sober the whole time I’ve been famous, so it wasn’t like I had to go to rehab publicly.” Davis has explained that she nearly gave up on acting before getting sober, but recovery helped her find stability and purpose.
Johnny Depp
Johnny Depp’s struggles intensified after his divorce from Amber Heard. He revealed to Rolling Stone: “I poured myself a vodka in the morning and started writing until the tears filled my eyes and I couldn’t see the page anymore.” He admitted to spending “far more” than $30,000 a month on wine, leading to what he called “personal and financial ruin.” Reflecting upon it later, he said: “I spent years poisoning myself… it was best to stop.” For Depp, redirecting his energy into music and acting has been part of rebuilding his life beyond addiction.
Jamie Campbell Bower
Stranger Things star Jamie Campbell Bower has been candid about his recovery journey. On X (formerly Twitter) in 2022, he revealed: “12 and a half years ago I was in active addiction… It got so bad that eventually I ended up in a hospital for mental health. I am now 7 1/2 years clean and sober.” He added, “Each day is a chance to start again. Atone for mistakes and grow.” Bower often expresses gratitude for his sobriety and reminds fans that recovery is about progress, not perfection.
Billy Joel
Music legend Billy Joel has admitted to cycles of heavy drinking, often tied to personal turmoil. In a 2013 New York Times Magazine interview, he reflected: “I don’t know why I drank so much … sometimes I just overdid it … it would be periods of time, during a divorce or something.” Elton John even publicly urged Joel to seek stricter rehab treatment, worrying alcohol was interfering with his life and music. Though Joel downplayed his need for formal programs, his honesty about binge drinking underscores how addiction often resurfaces in difficult chapters of life.
Stephen Moyer
True Blood star Stephen Moyer said fatherhood jolted him into sobriety. In a 2017 Telegraph interview, he admitted, “I got to a point in my life where I was totally out of control. Fatherhood was definitely a big aspect of that—the catalyst that shook me.” Moyer added, “People say, ‘When are you going to have a drink again?’ And my answer is, ‘I’ve already drunk all the drinks I was supposed to drink in one lifetime.’”
