“I lay on a grave”: Josh Brolin’s Horrifying Lightbulb Moment When He Realized Where His Life Was Heading Was A Far Cry From the MCU
- Josh Brolin has been open about his alcohol and drug addiction since the very beginning.
- In a recent interview, he recalled an exercise he had done years ago which gave him clarity about getting sober.
- The Marvel actor once also reflected on how meeting his very old grandmother inspired to get sober.
Josh Brolin might be one of the most acclaimed actors in Hollywood now, but his rise to stardom has not been a walk in the park. He has addressed his struggles with drug and alcohol addiction candidly several times over the years that he has spent in the industry as an A-lister.
Brolin’s career could have easily ended in the trenches if he had not picked up the reins of his life and, specifically, his sobriety in time. Now, with the release of his memoir, From Under the Truck, he is opening up like never before as he talks about different life events in vivid detail to let others know how he got where he is today, and it is undeniably one hell of a ride.
Josh Brolin Realized That He Needed to Get Sober After One Rather Eye-opening Experience
In a recent interview on In Depth with Graham Bensinger, Josh Brolin said that it was the day after Halloween in 2013 or 2014 when he decided to give up alcohol completely. He went on to say that on the suggestion of a friend who had struggled with similar issues, he went to a place where he got the help he needed to get better.
The Marvel alum stated that one of the things they asked him to do was lay on a grave in a cemetery nearby and imagine how angry his friends and family would be if he were to pass away at such a young age.
There was a cemetery close by, and they said “Go down to this grave lay on the cemetery.” I lay on a grave and “imagine your closest friends, your family, and your closest friends and all the people that love you end up at this funeral, but they’re pissed. They’re pissed because how you manipulated them, that you died young, and they loved you, and that you really, you know, really raked them over the coals and they’re angry about it.”
It took him quite a few tries to visualize, but once he saw what he needed to do, there was no turning back. He further said:
It helped me realize my responsibility not only to myself but to those who love me. It starts with my relationship with myself—how honest I am and how I carry myself. From that moment, the impact on my life has been massive.
Brolin said after the first couple of times of doing that exercise, he considered signing himself out of that place. However, he rationalized to himself that leaving would not be any help so he stayed, and luckily, that was the right decision.
Josh Brolin’s 99-Year-Old Grandmother Inspired Him to Get Sober
Long before, Josh Brolin became a movie star, he was just a boy raised on a ranch in California. Being the son of Golden Globe-winning actor, James Brolin and wildlife activist and casting director, Jane Brolin did not stop him from falling prey to addiction at a young age. As he grew up, he tried to get sober several times, but it was not an easy road to walk on.
Brolin began acting professionally in the 1980s and had a breakthrough with a part in the 1985 film, The Goonies. However, for almost 16 years, from 1990 to 2006, his career showed no signs of getting on track. Even when he began gaining his footing back in the industry with movies like No Country for Old Men and Milk, he had not completely turned his back on alcohol.
On an episode of the SiriusXM podcast Where Everybody Knows Your Name with co-hosts Ted Danson and Woody Harrelson, Brolin said that it was in 2013, when he woke up on the sidewalk and went to meet his 99-year-old grandmother with his brother, that he realized that he needed to get sober. That turned out to be the turning point in his life and he has been sober since.
