Bradley Cooper Shares How Parenting Changed His Life
By Movieguide® Contributor
In a recent appearance on the SMARTLESS podcast, Bradley Cooper revealed how fatherhood saved him from a serious drug addiction.
“I was so lost, and I was addicted to cocaine,” Cooper said of that time in his life. “I severed my Achilles tendon right after I got fired/quit ALIAS.”
The actor also spoke about his lack of self-confidence.
“I did have the benefit of that happening when I was 29,” Cooper said of his substance abuse issues. “I thought I made it when I got a Wendy’s commercial. In terms of the ‘made it’ thing, that’s when I made it.
“But I definitely did not feel [it], moving to Los Angeles for ALIAS feeling like I was back in high school. I could not get into any clubs, no girls wanted to look at me,” the actor continued, saying he was “totally depressed.”
“It wasn’t really until THE HANGOVER. I was 36 when I did THE HANGOVER, so I got to go through all those things before fame even played into my existence on a daily level,” he explained. “So all that happened before any of that.”
However, his career success was nothing compared to what it meant to Cooper to become a father.
“Fatherhood is … everything changed,” the actor shared. “Every single thing is absolutely shaded by, or brought into glorious colors, by the fact that I get to be a father to a wonderful human being.”
“You have this wonderful thing or breakthrough with a script, or you have a wonderful moment on this set or in an editing room … you have like 40 of those moments every day with your kid, that are that level of joy. That’s not spinning it, that’s just the truth,” Cooper concluded.
Movieguide® previously reported on Cooper’s commitment to family:
Actor Bradley Cooper talked about taking care of his mother during the coronavirus pandemic, and how his family is very close.
The JOY actor moved in with his parents, Gloria Campano and Charles Cooper, in 2011 to take care of his late father before he died of lung cancer.
Now, Cooper stays there to take care of Campano.
“I’m with my daughter and my mother and my two dogs, and we have not left the house,” he revealed to Interview Magazine. “My mother is going to be 80, and she has a colostomy bag, so I can’t let anybody in the house. And I can’t leave the house, because if she gets [coronavirus], it’s over.”
“We live in a little townhouse. Thankfully, there’s a backyard,” he added.
He’s also on dad duty, taking care of his 3-year-old daughter, Lea, whom he shares with ex-girlfriend Irina Shayk.
“I’m running a one-man preschool. We get up, we do swim class in the bathtub,” Cooper said.
Family is important to him, and he made that clear in an interview with the Los Angeles Times after his father died.“My family is very close, and my dad dying was brutal for all of us. It was a schism, and its aftershock has not stopped. And we need each other. So here we are.”
He added, “It’s not like I live in a compound and she’s in the guesthouse. No. She’s in the next room. But here’s the thing: She’s a cool chick. We can hang, and she can roll with the punches.”
“I love having her [living with us],” he said at the time. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
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Now more than ever we’re bombarded by darkness in media, movies, and TV. Movieguide® has fought back for almost 40 years, working within Hollywood to propel uplifting and positive content. We’re proud to say we’ve collaborated with some of the top industry players to influence and redeem entertainment for Jesus. Still, the most influential person in Hollywood is you. The viewer.
What you listen to, watch, and read has power. Movieguide® wants to give you the resources to empower the good and the beautiful. But we can’t do it alone. We need your support.
You can make a difference with as little as $7. It takes only a moment. If you can, consider supporting our ministry with a monthly gift. Thank you.
Movieguide® is a 501c3 and all donations are tax deductible.
