Daniel Radcliff got candid about his past struggles with alcohol, sharing the moment that made him go sober after years of relying on booze to cope with fame.
He became a celebrity at a young age
Daniel Radcliff, 36, became a known face when he was only 12 years old after taking on the lead role in the hit movie franchise Harry Potter.
While fame can come with its perks, it may not be as glamorous as it seems.
Radcliff felt overwhelmed with the stardom
The actor shared that popularity overwhelmed him as he began feeling like he was ‘being watched’.
This caused him to turn to alcohol as a way to cope with the scrutiny he faced as a teenager under the spotlight.
He felt like people were watching his every step
In a 2019 appearance on The Off Camera Show, Radcliff shared, “It could have largely been in my head…but you would feel watched when you went into a bar, when you went into a pub.”
“In my case, the quickest way of forgetting about the fact that you’re being watched was to get very drunk.”
It had a big impact on his life
“It can affect your psyche and you sort of have to…there is no blueprint for starting young and working stuff out,” Radcliff said.
The actor went on to defend young stars who also struggled with their fame, as he was speaking from a place of relatability.
Radcliff spoke about how hard it can be
“That’s like when people have a go at Justin Bieber for drag racing cars,” he said. “I’m like, yeah, but stuff could be super crazy for him right now.”
“You don’t quite know how overwhelmed it’s possible to get.”
The pressure to be happy all the time was too much
“Part of the thing is the expectation that you should just be delighted all the time,” Radcliff added.
“You have a great job, you’re wealthy – you don’t have a ‘right’ to ever feel sad or to not be excited about the whole thing.”
He realized he had become dependent on it
The actor previously shared that he realized he had become dependent on alcohol by the time he was working on the sixth Harry Potter movie.
In 2011, he told GQ, “I became reliant on alcohol to enjoy stuff,” before adding that he would show up to set hungover, but not drunk.
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“I can point to many scenes where I’m just gone. Dead behind the eyes,” he told Heat magazine once.
There was a moment where he decided to stop
Radcliff shared that he stopped drinking in 2010 before starting again a few years later. Then there was a moment where he decided to steer clear of booze completely.
He told The Off Camera Show, it ‘took a few years and a couple of attempts’ to get himself firmly off alcohol.
He credited the people who helped him
Radcliff credited people around him for helping, saying, “I have been just unbelievably lucky with the people I’ve had around me at certain times in my life.”
“I met some really key people – some of them actors, some of them not – who just gave me great advice and really cared for me.”
Radcliff made the decision to go sober
“And, ultimately, [sobriety] was my own decision. I woke up one morning and I was like, ‘This is probably not good’,” he said.
“I’m really much happier now,” Radcliff said as he explained how he ‘doesn’t miss’ the addiction, and can’t believe the ‘chaos he used to invite into his life.’
