Top 10 Actors Who Were Drug Addicts

Top 10 Actors Who Were Drug Addicts

All of us have a dark side to our lives, sometimes it’s a dirty secret that no one should know and sometimes it’s a macabre past. For many Hollywood stars, this “dark side” is synonymous to “drugs”. Yes, many of the most successful stars in Hollywood right now were once drug addicts, and as you kids call it nowadays, “deep in shit”. Whether it was due to peer pressure from their fellow celebrities or just a party-habit gone wrong, these stars succumbed to the obsession. However, what matters is that almost all of them did away with their addiction and put back their life together eventually. Here is a list of the Top 10 Actors Who Were Drug Addicts.

Top 10 Actors Who Were Drug Addicts

10. Zac Effron

The High School Musical sweetheart Zac Effron had problems with substance abuse too, just like most other high school kids. He is known to once have been addicted to cocaine and alcohol, for which he had to go to rehab more than once. He has also involved in a fight with a homeless man in Skid Row, but was not arrested. However, he is clean now and is growing even more popular by the day with many of his new films releasing this year. He is therefore number 10 on our list of the Top 10 Actors Who Were Drug Addicts.

9. Johnny Depp

Next in our list of the Top 10 Actors Who Were Drug Addicts is the adored Captain Jack Sparrow. Johnny Depp has spoken candidly about his substance abuse and regrets poisoning himself in the past. Depp had started smoking at an early age of 12 and moved on to drug and alcohol abuse soon after that. Recent allegations of his violent streaks are incredibly sad, and we hope that things look better for the actor in the future.

8. Macaulay Culkin

The child star Macaulay Culkin won all of our hearts with his roles in Home Alone and its sequel as well as that in Richie Rich. Naturally, it came as a shock when in 2012, a scandalizing photograph which went viral, showed just how hard he had spiralled into substance abuse. The end of his relationship with actress Mila Kunis did not help the situation one bit. He was also the victim of an internet hoax claiming that he had died due to his addiction. However, our beloved Kevin is currently clean and doing very well with his new girlfriend Jordan Lane Price. Sadly, his run-in with substance abuse has landed him in our list of the Top 10 Actors Who Were Drug Addicts.

7. Russell Brand

One of our favourite actors of all time, Russell Brand is number 7 on our list of the Top 10 Actors Who Were Drug Addicts. Brand has been known to abuse many substances including heroin, which to him was “bliss”. Brand was arrested not once, not ten, but twelve times due to drug related issues. However, he has abstained from drugging since 2002 and tweeted about his sobriety on 13 December, 2014. Brand is an inspiration and also a sponsor to people with a history of drug problems during their rehabilitation stage.

6. Matthew Perry

Yes, as hard as it may be to believe, Chandler Bing did drugs once upon a time and is next in the Top 10 Actors Who Were Drug Addicts. Perry was addicted to Vicodin and other opiods, and alcohol, for which he went to rehab in 2001. He lost weight drastically due to his addiction, a fact that was evident when fans saw an extremely lanky Chandler Bing in the middle of the series. Perry went to rehab and emerged victorious. He lobbied members of the Congress for support for drug courts back in 2011. Perry House, a sober home was started by Matthew in his former house in Malibu, for which the actor received a Champion of Recovery award in 2013. We’re proud of you, Chandler!

5. Drew Barrymore

Next in line in the list of the Top 10 Actors Who Were Drug Addicts is the Charlie’s Angels star, Drew Barrymore. The 6-year-old Barrymore captured out hearts in her role of Gertie in E.T., so it might come as a shock when we tell you that this sweetheart of America started consuming alcohol when she was only 9 and soon went on to drug abuse. It started with just getting slightly stoned to extremely heavy stuff so much so that she had to go through extensive drug rehabilitation treatment when she was only 13. Now the proud mother of two daughters, Barrymore has said that her rough childhood has actually helped her be a good mother. We love her for her zeal and she remains a favourite.

4. Robert Downey Jr.

Yes, you’ve read correctly. Our own Tony Stark was a substance abuser, and a very big one at that. He comes next in the list of the Top 10 Actors Who Were Drug Addicts. Robert Downey was notorious in his addiction of drugs, having had his first taste of it at the surprisingly young age of 5. He has had a vast number of extremely juvenile and embarrassing incidents accounting to his abuse. He had spent countless nights in jail due to the same. Downey’s taste for heroin and cocaine had made him subject to court-ordered rehabilitation twice. However, the actor has turned his life around and being sober has worked miraculously for his career. Presently, Downey has said that the strongest addiction he has is that of coffee. We feel you, man.

3. Heath Ledger

Our Joker also finds himself in the Top 10 Actors Who Were Drug Addicts. Ledger had been an exceptional artist, one who was loved by all. Furthermore, he was as addicted to heroin as you can be. Although he had finally quit and gone through with rehab, Ledger succumbed to an accidental overdose of other drugs in 2008. We hope he rests in peace.

2. Charlie Sheen

Let’s face it. Charlie Sheen is in fact Charlie Harper in real-life. He comes next in our list of the Top 10 Actors Who Were Drug Addicts. Sheen has a rocky history of drug abuse. He suffered from a stroke due to the same and pulled a classic Charlie Harper when he tried fleeing from rehabilitation. His dismissal from Two and a Half Men was despised by all and the actor has not been in the spotlight too much since he starred in Anger Management. We only hope he is doing well.

1. Lindsay Lohan

This 30-year-old actress is known by the whole world for her extreme abuse of drugs which lands her in the first place of the Top 10 Actors Who Were Drug Addicts. The Mean Girls star has had numerous encounters of being caught abusing substances, being ordered rehab by the court, spending time in prison, being sentenced to probation and community service and violating the same. The only thing we hope for the actress is that she maintains her current sobriety and maybe focuses her energy on her career.

This article especially goes out to all the people who are coping with the same. Hang on there, guys. Take inspiration from these amazing individuals who turned around their lives for the better!