Brad Pitt Talks About Depression Battle and Smoking “Way Too Much Dope”
Brad Pitt may be one of the most sought-after actors and producers in Hollywood, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have his demons, including drugs and depression.
In a new interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Pitt opens up about his battles, saying that ten years ago, he was in a very different, bad place:
“I got really sick of myself at the end of the 1990s: I was hiding out from the celebrity thing; I was smoking way too much dope; I was sitting on the couch and just turning into a doughnut; and I really got irritated with myself…I got to: ‘What’s the point? I know better than this.’”
But drugs wasn’t Pitt’s only problem. The TREE OF LIFE star also battled depression, something that helped mold who he is today:
“I used to deal with depression, but I don’t now, not this decade — maybe last decade. But that’s also figuring out who you are…I see it as a great education, as one of the seasons or a semester: ‘This semester I was majoring in depression.’ I was doing the same thing every night and numbing myself to sleep — the same routine: Couldn’t wait to get home and hide out. But that feeling of unease was growing and one night I just said, ‘This is a waste.’”
It was trips to places like Yugoslavia and Morocco that made Pitt finally change his life, and focus on a new calling: philanthropy:
“I just quit. I stopped grass then — I mean, pretty much — and decided to get off the couch…I sought out Bono and sat down with him a few times and got involved in some of the stuff he was doing. But it all started before that. It started with private acts.”
And now? Brad says that he’s at peace with himself, and his life, all because he knows that those dark times are needed to bring you to the light.
“This idea of perpetual happiness is crazy and overrated, because those dark moments fuel you for the next bright moments; each one helps you appreciate the other…We are all searching for meaning in our lives, love and betterment for ourselves and those around us.”
