Celebrity Recovery Stories

Bradley Cooper

Bradley Cooper used alcohol, drugs, and “mean humor”³ to fit into the environment of Los Angeles actors. Despite his efforts, he realized he hadn’t made progress in becoming more popular—and was even doing the opposite.

In 2004, Bradley’s friend, Will Arnett, held an intervention to help him see the scope of his addiction and the harm it caused (forgetting to let his dog out all day after being on cocaine, for example). Cooper focused on his sobriety from that moment on and has been sober for almost 20 years.

Treatment also helped him grow his self-esteem and become confident without using substances to fit in. Now, he’s known to be generous, charming, and kind.  

Robert Downey Jr 

Robert Downey Jr’s experience with drugs began at age 6⁴, when his father offered him marijuana. They used various substances together throughout his childhood. Downey Jr, like many others, was soon caught in the cycle of using to self-soothe and hide from the negative effects his addiction had on his life.

Robert Downey Jr has been arrested multiple times for drug use⁵ and spent a year in prison. After his third arrest, he checked himself into rehab and has stayed sober. A recent documentary featuring his late father details his recovery and history with addiction.

After becoming sober, Robert Downey Jr went on to have a wildly successful career. He speaks about his addiction and recovery to highlight the sobriety journey and offer his real-life success story.

Daniel Radcliffe

Daniel Radcliffe, best known for his role as Harry Potter, used alcohol to cope with the scrutiny and pressure⁶ of such a monumental role. He’s said his way of dealing with it was “just to drink more or get more drunk, so I did a lot of that for a few years.”

He would drink to forget he was being watched, then drink more to forget they were watching the “boy wizard” get drunk. As the movies drew to a close, Daniel continued to use alcohol to distance himself from the end and from figuring out who he was outside the role. 

With support from friends, he started his sobriety in 2010. He’s been sober since and enjoying new roles outside the wizarding world. 

Lindsay Lohan

Lindsay Lohan has a successful acting career freckled with jail time, arrests, and rehab. She described alcohol as a gateway drug for her, and she dabbled in cocaine to fit in with the party scene. 

She received her first DUI at age 20⁷ and was in court for various drug/alcohol-related convictions 20 times from 2007-2012. A judge ordered her to go to court-ordered drug rehab in 2012. She credits that as what turned her life around. 

After regaining sobriety, Lindsay Lohan moved to the United Arab Emirates for a quieter, more anonymous life. She’s since gotten back into acting and helping others along their sobriety journeys.

Drew Barrymore

Drew Barrymore’s struggles with drugs and alcohol began as young as 9 years old. She attended rehab twice by age 12⁸ and was hospitalized for 18 months following a suicide attempt and continued substance use. Her public struggles with addiction and mental health at first made it difficult to find roles. 

After her hospital stay, Drew emancipated from her parents. She eventually found success in acting again and married. She then divorced and married again later, having two children before a second divorce.

Her second divorce in 2016 drove her to alcohol use⁹. She says, “It was just trying to numb the pain and feel good—and alcohol totally did that for me.” An unnamed rehab facility and her daughters helped her recover.

Now, Drew Barrymore inspires other celebrities to talk about mental health and addiction on her talk show The Drew Barrymore Show and beyond.

Ben Affleck

Ben Affleck rose to fame in the early 90s. He went to rehab for alcoholism¹⁰ and a reset in 2001, then again in 2017 and 2018. 

A divorce in 2016 exacerbated his drinking. He went to rehab again, regained sobriety, and has since had relapses—some of which were famously documented. But he didn’t let that derail his recovery. 

Ben has become strong in his 12-Step program and, more generally, as a celebrity in recovery. He’s been quoted to say¹¹, 

“It doesn’t really bother me to talk about alcoholism and being an alcoholic. It’s part of my life. It’s something that I deal with. It doesn’t have to sort of subsume my whole identity and be everything, but it is something that, you know, you have to work at.”

Demi Lovato

Demi’s first experience with drugs came when she was 13 and prescribed opioids after a car accident. Bullying and an early rise to fame led her to start cocaine in 2009, at age 17.

A sexual assault, and the coping skills she used after, eventually led her to treatment for self-harm and an eating disorder in 2010. There, she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder¹². Demi checked into a sober home shortly after, in 2013.

Demi stayed sober for 6 years after years of heavy drinking and drug use (mainly cocaine). She highlighted her eating disorder recovery in 2017. But in July of 2018, she suffered a near-fatal heroin overdose¹³. After a 2-week hospital stay, Demi was released. 

She later relapsed on heroin, which served as another wake-up call. Demi got back into treatment and adopted a California sober approach to recovery, which meant she still used weed and alcohol in moderation. In the last couple years, she’s changed her approach to sober-sober¹⁴, or not drinking and using drugs in any amount.  

Now, Demi continues to take her journey day-by-day with an attitude of humility and hope.

John Mulaney

As one might expect, comedian John Mulaney describes his addiction with a unique level of hilarity. He first went to rehab in December 2020¹⁵ after initially getting sober in his early twenties.

He became addicted to cocaine and prescription pain pills, which he kept on hand through shady (or clever) routes. One included buying and pawning a watch to purchase drugs with the cash. In other schemes, he went to low-rated doctors who he knew wouldn’t turn down the prescription requests of any new patient. 

At first, he feared the public’s response to his addiction and how it went against his public-facing demeanor. However, many received the news with little to no judgment, instead feeling glad he sought help. This highlights the upward swing in the public’s perception of addiction. 

He credits his friends and their intervention as what got him to get help. Reflecting on his 3-year sobriety, he says, “​​I used to care what everyone thought about me so much…And I don’t anymore. Because I can honestly say, ‘What is someone gonna do to me that’s worse than what I would do to myself?'”

Start Your Recovery Journey

Time has shown the deep humanity of celebrities, despite what the media might have us believe. Their stardom doesn’t save them from suffering; but it can make them excellent advocates for recovery. Money and fame didn’t make them recover. Their own personal choices and efforts did. 

Whether or not you’re a famous actor, comedian, or other celebrity, you have resources for your recovery. Celebrity addiction stories highlight that truth. A residential rehab could provide the safe, structured environment you need to begin, and maintain, your recovery.
You can browse our list of rehabs to see photos, reviews, insurance information, and more all in one place.