“I had one husband who said he was a s*x addict”: Halle Berry Opens Up on Her Troubled Married Life With Painful Past Experiences

Established herself as one of the highest-paid actresses in Hollywood in the 2000s, Halle Berry started her career as a model and, in 1992, appeared alongside Eddie Murphy in Boomerang. Berry’s performance in 2001’s Monster Ball was highly lauded and earned her an Academy Award for Best Actress. Halle Berry winning an Oscar was setting up a record, as she became the only African-American to win the award and was also the first woman of color to win the Academy Award for Best Actress.

Halle Berry is known to be one of the most respected and beloved actresses in the industry who, with her sheer determination and hard work, has proved why she is one of the highest-paid actresses. While her professional life has always been good, Berry’s personal life has had some ups and downs, and she opened up about it in a recent interview with Dax Shepard.

Halle Berry says she does not believe her ex-husband Eric Benét’s claims

Academy Award-winning actress Halle Berry recently appeared on Dax Shepard’s Armchair Expert podcast, where she revealed that she does not believe the claims of her ex-husband Eric Benét that he battled s*x addiction. She said without naming her ex,

I had one husband who said he was a s*x addict. But I don’t f**king believe that s**t.

The singer-songwriter who married the actress in 2001 reportedly sought medical help and went to rehab for s*x addiction in 2002. At the time there were rumors about Benét cheating on actress which eventually led to their divorce. The pair separated in 2003, and the actress, in her interview with EW, shared at the time,

Eric and I have had marital problems for some time now and have tried to work things out together. However, at this point, I feel we need time apart to reevaluate our union. We ask that you respect our privacy as we are going through this emotional time.

Benét, in his interview with ABC News in 2004, doubled down the claims and mentioned that he is not a s*x addict. He added that he is a person who, through a series of emotional events, troubles, and challenges, made some really stupid and painful mistakes.

Further in her conversation with Dax Shepard, Berry touched upon her current relationsip with singer Van Hunt. She shared,

This is the longest relationship I’ve ever had in my whole life. I can’t get past three years. We celebrated when we hit four years like we had been married 20 years; that’s how big it was for me personally.

The actress and the singer have been together since 2020, and even though the actress admits that they were scared after their relationship surpassed the 3-year mark because they suspected a breakup was just around the corner. Berry noted that Hunt was waiting for the shoe to drop and she was waiting to drop the show, but it’s been a relief for her to know that she can do this. Talking about Hunt, she said,

He’s calm, and he’s what I’ve been dreaming of, searching for, and needing. I thought, ‘I could not do this. I didn’t want it.’ I was going to live alone, be single forever, just raise my kids, and do my job, and then he came when I wasn’t trying to manipulate it; I wasn’t trying to make it happen.

The actress mentioned that her relationships never crossed the 3-year mark because, according to her, they were always wrong from the beginning. It’s something she realized very later in her life. Hunt showed up, and she felt like he was chosen for her.

Halle Berry clarifies the NSFW scene in Monster’s Ball with Billy Bob Thornton

The actress was highly appreciated for her work as Leticia Musgrove in Monster’s Ball, which earned her a historic Academy Award win. The movie is also remembered for one NSFW scene, which the actress has finally clarified on. She clarified during the podcast by stating,

There’s an urban legend that we really were f**king; I’ve heard it, and it’s just not true. It’s secretly driven me mad all these years. You can’t just be a good actor, and you can’t just make that s**t look real.

Billy Bob Thornton’s character Hank Grotowski and Berry’s Leticia Musgrove find solace in each other after they open up about their traumas, which leads to them having dinner and arriving at Leticia’s house. The two characters get drunk and have s*x, which remains one of the most iconic s*x scenes ever shot. Berry admits that the conversation around the scene irked her, especially since Thornton, at the time, was with Angelina Jolie. She added,

He had a wife, so—all respect.

Talking about her win, the actress mentioned that she’s still eternally miffed with the fact that no Black woman has come behind her for that Best Actress award. She added that that continually saddens her every year, and it’s not because there has been no one deserving.

Monster’s Ball is available on VOD via Prime Video or Apple TV.