LOS ANGELES – Academy Award-winning actor George Clooney has offered a rare, candid glimpse into his personal history, discussing his experimentation with drugs during his early years in Hollywood, primarily in the 1980s.
In a recent, in-depth conversation with Esquires magazine, the actor took a reflective look back at the cultural landscape of the era, admitting to drug use early in his career. While immediately confirming he “did blow and stuff,” Clooney was careful to contextualize the experience, clarifying that it “was never a big issue for me at all.”
“Eighty-two, I tried — I did blow and stuff,” the 64-year-old actor was quoted as saying. He reflected on the pervasive acceptance of drug use at the time, recalling that people believed it wasn’t as addictive as heroin. “But then it was like, Oh, well, it’s actually pretty f***ing bad,” he noted, underscoring the shift in perception.
Clooney also provided a surprisingly vivid and human detail about the quality of the drugs being circulated. He admitted that the substances “were all cut with mannitol. The baby laxative. Everybody would do a line and then take a s***.”
Recounting a particularly intense experience that left a lasting impression, Clooney admitted, “We were f***ed,” adding a moment of stark vulnerability. He recalled a screening room where he and about twenty others sat in silence for “hours! Like the sun was coming up… it’s just not my drug.”
Concluding his personal admissions, Clooney acknowledged other periods of heavy drinking, though he maintained it was never a debilitating problem: “I’ve had periods where, I wouldn’t say it was a problem—I never woke up and drank or anything. But I’d have runs where I’d get pretty toasty every night.” His remarks offer a poignant reflection on the pressures and excesses that defined the entertainment industry during his formative years.
