Josh Brolin opens up in a new, post-rehab interview about his drug abuse, admits he tried heroin and spoke about how his arrest for public intoxication on New Year’s Day was a turning point for him.
The 46-year-old actor — who stars most recently opposite Kate Winslet in ‘Labor Day’ — spent time in rehab after a difficult 2013 which saw him arrested in the wee hours of New Year’s Day for public intoxication and later his involvement in a bar brawl and an altercation, both of which were caught on video by TMZ. It has been no secret that the actor has faced some challenges and he has had more than his share of unwanted publicity.
In speaking with UK newspaper The Guardian about his role in ‘Labor Day’ as an escaped convict who romances the woman (portrayed by Kate Winslet who takes him in he opened up about his own struggles which belie his background.
No, Brolin did not come from a “rough background” in the usual sense of the term, as the son of actor James Brolin who is now married to Barbra Streisand; his mother was the late Jane Cameron, a wildlife activist, The Guardian notes in the article.
And while Josh Brolin acknowledged his privileged upbringing in California, he spoke also of his troubled past including his involvement in the Cito Rats surf gang in Santa Barbara which he described as a mix of children both rich and poor who had in common that they were neglected by their parent. The gang and his history of drug use were interlinked.
Noting that he robbed cars to pay for his drug habit he said, “I tried heroin…That sounds so horrible when you put it like that. But yeah, I tried heroin. I mean, I never got into it and I never died from it, which is a good thing. I’ve had 19 friends who died. Most of those guys I grew up with, they’re all dead now.”
He went on to say that heroin was not for him, as he continued, “I used to think you should try to deconstruct everything. Experience everything. Just get yourself out there. But I don’t believe that any more. Having adventures is all very well, but an imagination can make up for all that. That’s the more intelligent way to be. And it keeps you out of harm’s way.”
When we consider the deaths of actors Cory Monteith and Philip Seymour Hoffman who both struggled with heroin addiction which took their lives, tragically, it is a cautionary tale and one that Josh Brolin is fortunate to have survived to tell.
But what explains his recent troubles? Here, Brolin sheds some light. He speaks of his New Year’s Day arrest for public intoxication which was followed a month later by his split from his wife, actress Diane Lane. “Well, it was another turning point…It made me think of a lot of things. My mum dying when I was in my 20s. All the impact that had on me that I hadn’t moved past; I was always such a momma’s boy. But I realised that I was on a destructive path. I knew that I had to change and mature. It was like I stepped back and saw the hamster wheel.”
The full article in The Guardian is online and can be seen here. In it, Brolin speaks about portraying the character in ‘Labor Day’ and expounds upon these issues of wrestling with demons a tale which, as noted, he is still alive to tell.
Pictures: PR Photos
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/RightCelebrity/~3/eHQtQp-86cA/
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