Celebrity
Tom Holland Opens Up About His Journey To Sobriety
“I had such better mental clarity. I felt healthier, I felt fitter.”
Trigger Warning: this article contains mentions of alcohol misuse.
Since first revealing his decision to go sober in May, Tom Holland has opened up further about giving up alcohol, calling it “the best thing” he has ever done. Speaking on the On Purpose with Jay Shetty podcast, the Spider-Man star shared that his journey to sobriety began shortly after the Christmas period in 2021, during which time he “was drinking a lot.”
“I didn’t one day wake up and say, ‘I’m giving up drinking,’” Holland disclosed. “I just, like many Brits, had had a very, very boozy December. [It was] Christmas time, I was on vacation, I was drinking a lot, and I’ve always been able to drink a lot.”
The actor went on to explain that he first decided to give up alcohol throughout the month of January, and when “having a drink” began to consume his thoughts, Holland became concerned about his relationship with alcohol. “It just really scared me. I just was like, ‘Wow, maybe. Maybe I have a little bit of an alcohol thing.’ So I sort of decided to punish myself and say, ‘I’ll do February as well. I’ll do two months off. If I can do two months off, then I can prove to myself that I don’t have a problem.’”
The Crowded Room star eventually set himself the goal of giving up alcohol for six months, and by the time of his birthday on June 1, the actor said he was “the was the happiest I've ever been in my life.”
“I could sleep better. I could handle problems better,” Holland recalled. “Things that would go wrong on set, that would normally set me off, I could take in my stride. I had such better mental clarity. I felt healthier, I felt fitter.” The MCU star also revealed that his own experience inspired his mother to embrace sobriety, too. “She’s loving it, and it’s been amazing,” he added.
Holland first discussed his sobriety in May 2023, when he revealed in an interview with Entertainment Weekly that he had been sober for over a year after having a “bit of a meltdown” while filming the Apple TV+ crime thriller The Crowded Room. Holland later shared that he’s in the midst of “taking a year off” from acting — during which time he has been “chilling at home in London, going to Grand Prixes, and playing golf.”
If you or someone you know is seeking help for substance use, call the SAMHSA National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).
