Brad, Elton and Naomi: 7 A-listers who got candid about sobriety

In recent years, there has been a growing number of celebrities speaking out about their journey to sobriety and why they chose to give up the booze entirely.

Anne Hathaway’s sobriety journey is the most recent to make headlines.

The mum of two revealed she hadn’t had a drink in five years, during a recent interview with the New York Times.

“I don’t normally talk about it, but I am over five years sober,” she said, confirming she quit drinking in 2019.

“That feels like a milestone to me.”

She isn’t the only A-lister to embrace the alcohol-free life; here are 7 stars who have spoken out about their sobriety:

Sir Elton John

It’s no secret that the much-loved piano man once battled with the dark side of fame.

In the early years of his stardom, John fell into a constant cycle of drug and alcohol abuse, confessing that much of the 1970s and 1980s he experienced life through a “drug-fueled haze”. However, in 1990, after witnessing the devastating effects of the AIDS epidemic, he decided to get clean.

He told The Fix in 2017: “Within six months I became sober, and clean, and have been for the last 27 years”.

The Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony (EGOT) award winner has remained open about his decision to say goodbye to the substances once and for all.

In 2020, while celebrating his 30 year anniversary of sobriety, he told fans in a social media post: “If I hadn’t finally taken the big step of asking for help 30 years ago, I’d be dead. Thank you from the bottom of my heart to all the people who have inspired and supported me along the way”, he wrote.

John also shared photos of a cake shaped like the number 30, a 30-year recovery chip and a table filled with cards from friends and family.

The latter photo was accompanied by the caption: “Reflecting on the most magical day having celebrated my 30th Sobriety Birthday. So many lovely cards, flowers and chips from my sons, David, friends in the Program, staff at the office and in our homes. I’m truly a blessed man”.

Miley Cyrus

The popstar once provoked worldwide headlines after she appeared to pull out a marijuana joint and light up on stage before smoking it at the 2013 MTV European Music Awards in Amsterdam.

But despite her previous party girl antics, the 31-year-old has reportedly left drugs and alcohol in the past.

In June 2020, the star sat down with Variety where she revealed she had been “sober sober” for six months – a move that initially came as a result of needing vocal surgery.

Speaking to the outlet, she said: “I’ve been sober for the past six months. At the beginning, it was just about this vocal surgery… It’s really hard, especially being [sober and] young, there’s that stigma of ‘you’re no fun’ [but] it’s like, ‘Honey, you can call me a lot of things, but I know that I’m fun’.”

Later that year, the Plastic Hearts singer revealed to Apple Music’s Zane Lowe that she had relapsed during the pandemic but instead of getting mad at herself, she worked through it and soon decided to return to life without substances.

Revealing her choice to embark on sober life, Cyrus said she is “not a moderation person” and decided to give up completely, adding: “I don’t think that everyone has to be sober, everyone has to do what’s best for them”.

“I don’t have a problem with drinking, I have a problem with the decisions I make once I go past that level… I become very impulsive.”

The star hasn’t shared an update on her sobriety in recent years.

Brad Pitt

While the A-lister has kept his comments about his sobriety to a minimum, on the odd occasion, he has opened up about his life without alcohol and even credited fellow Hollywood star and friend Bradley Cooper with helping him get sober.

While giving a speech at the National Board of Review Gala, Pitt accepted an award for Best Supporting Actor from Cooper, telling the audience: “Bradley just put his daughter to bed and rushed over here to do this.

“He’s a sweetheart. I got sober because of this guy and every day has been happier since.”

Pitt first embarked on sobriety in 2016 after his high-profile divorce from actress Angelina Jolie.

In the 18 months after their split, the Bullet Train actor spent 18 months in Alcoholics Anonymous, telling New York Times in 2019, that he is “committed” to his sobriety, adding: “I had taken things as far as I could take it, so I removed my drinking privileges”.

Elsewhere, in 2022, the star sat down with GQ where he shared insight into his time in the group, adding: “I had a really cool men’s group here that was really private and selective, so it was safe”.

Pitt continued to say: “Because I’d seen things of other people, like Philip Seymour Hoffman, who had been recorded while they were spilling their guts, and that’s just atrocious to me”.

He also said his experience in AA was a “freeing” experience being able to “expose the ugly sides of yourself”.

Naomi Campbell

The supermodel has candidly confessed in the past she struggled to control her drinking, particularly between 1998 and 2005, after the shock assassination of her close friend Gianni Versace in 1997.

While appearing on the Apple TV+’s docuseries, The Super Models, last year, she spoke about the years after Versace’s death, confessing that she “kept the sadness inside and dealt with it” by relying on alcohol and drugs, particularly cocaine, to deal with her grief.

“Addiction is such a bulls**t thing,” she said.

“You think it’s going to heal that wound, but it doesn’t.”

Despite checking into rehab in 1999 after collapsing at a photoshoot and attempting to stay sober by attending Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and Narcotics Anonymous (NA) meetings, the star’s sobriety journey was not always straight forward and over the years she battled multiple relapses.

She previously told Vogue UK: “The time between 1998 and 2005 was especially bad. During that time I avoided looking in the mirror, because I didn’t like the person who was looking back at me. To be honest, there were times I thought I wouldn’t survive.

“I used to have a lot of problems… amongst others I drank too much, so I joined AA to get and stay sober.”

Now, the supermodel is living a life committed to sobriety and continues to share her experiences in an effort to help others.

Elle MacPherson

The popular Australian supermodel has proudly celebrated her sobriety for many years: 20 years sober.

Speaking to Body+Soul in November last year, just two months after celebrating the two-decade-long commitment, the Australian model and businesswoman said alcohol became something that was blocking her from reaching her full potential as a person and, once she gave up, she was able to get to know herself on a “deeper level”.

“I stopped drinking in 2003 because I felt I couldn’t be fully present in my life, and it was a wonderful springboard of getting to know myself on a deeper level,” she told the magazine.

Explaining that it’s something she doesn’t regret, she added: “Everybody has their own journey, and I’m not interested in telling other people what to do, but I know that this was a decision that I’ve never regretted”.

MacPherson celebrated her sobriety anniversary in September 2023 by sharing a picture of a tri-plate Alcoholics Anonymous medallion complete with ‘XX’ in the middle, which stands for 20 in Roman numerals, on her Instagram page writing: “20 years, this is a wonderful day. I’ve never seen this one before”.

50 Cent

The rapper once sold drugs and even owns the popular alcohol brand Branson Liquor, but his relationship with substances starts and ends there.

Speaking to Piers Morgan in 2011, the rapper said he has never done drugs and has only experienced being drunk a handful of times.

“I don’t actually use drugs,” he confessed. Adding: “I got a chance to watch a lot of my mother’s sisters and brothers at different periods experiment with the use of drugs or alcohol and I see them respond so differently that I stay away”.

In terms of his alcohol brand, the star doesn’t let his sobriety get in the way of a good time and explained in his 2022 book, Hustle Harder, Hustle Smarter that if you ever see him drinking from a champagne bottle, all is not what it seems.

“First I’ll pour drinks from a bottle of Champagne for everyone who is in VIP with me,” he explains in the book.

“When the bottle is empty, I’ll give it to one of my guys and have him quietly refill it with ginger ale. For the rest of the night I’ll have that bottle in my hand. I’ll take swigs every now and then just to keep the vibe right, but I’m not drinking anything but Canada Dry.”

As for drugs, the In da Club rapper said Snoop Dogg offered him a joint during a party recently.

“Everyone around us started cheering for me to hit it.”

The star said he didn’t want to “kill the mood” and “took a big hit” adding, “and then just let the smoke swirl around in my mouth before I blew it back out. That’s as far as it went. Bill Clinton has probably inhaled more weed smoke than me”.

Ben Affleck

The Hollywood A-lister has a long history with his sobriety journey. His first attempt came nearly 30 years ago in 1997 shortly after his hit film, Good Will Hunting was released.

Speaking to Fox News at the time, the actor said he “just wanted to stop” as he began “regretting” things he did when under the influence.

“It’s funny to be obnoxious or out of control, but then it’s like: ‘I think I hurt that person’s feelings, ‘I made a fool of myself’ or ‘I didn’t want to kiss that girl.’ I have almost no inhibitions, so it’s dangerous for me”.

The actor sought professional help in 2001 and checked into rehab, where he lived a sober life for many years. However, he suffered multiple setbacks over the years and returned to rehab in 2017, 2018 and 2019, while navigating his separation from Jennifer Garner, his ex-wife and mother of his three children, Violet, Seraphina and Samuel.

Speaking to ABC News in 2020, explaining: “I was sober for a couple of years and then I thought: ‘You know, I want to just drink like a normal person and I want to have wine at dinner.’ And I was able to for about eight years.”

Affleck has since returned to his sober ways with his children being a driving force for his choice. He told the New York Times later that year that fatherhood taught him to be sober “during these formative years for my kids”.

Where to get help:

* Alcohol Drug Helpline 0800 787 797

* Alcoholics Anonymous 0800 229 6757

* LifeLine 0800 543 354 (24 hours)

* Living Sober support network www.livingsober.org.nzhttp://livingwithoutalcohol.blogspot.co.nz (Lotta Dann’s blog)