HALF A CENTURY –
December 30, 2025 – Double Oscar-winner Sir Anthony Hopkins has urged anyone struggling with addiction to “choose life” and seek help as he celebrated 50 years of sobriety. Hopkins has spoken about how he realized he needed help after he was “nearly killed” driving in a “drunken blackout” on 29 December 1975. “I got help and 50 years ago today was the end. Without being a killjoy I just wish you all choose life instead of the opposite.”
Hopkins added: “I realised at that point that I was having too much fun. It was called alcoholism.
“So anyone out there who’s got a little problem with having too much, check it out, because life is much better.”
Congratulating others celebrating being in recovery from addiction “one day at a time”, he said: “I’m also going to be 88 in two days’ time, so maybe I did something right.
“Anyway Happy New Year and a happy, happy life.”
In 2018, Sir Anthony opened up about his alcoholism when speaking to a group of students at the University of California.
He admitted he was “very difficult to work with” early in his stage career because he “was usually hungover”.
Sir Anthony said he had been “disgusted, busted and not to be trusted” while he was drinking.
He said he turned his life around after talking to a woman from Alcoholics Anonymous in 1975. there have been 50, that’s a huge increase for just five months.”
