Bradley Cooper Admits He's 'Lucky' to Be 19 Years Sober After Drug Addiction Drastically Hindered His Work

Bradley Cooper candidly discussed his drug and alcohol addiction on a recent episode of National Geographic's Running Wild With Bear Grylls: The Challenge.

While speaking with host Bear Grylls, the Oscar nominee was asked about his "wild years," to which Cooper opened up about his struggles with substance abuse.

"In terms of alcohol and drugs, yeah, but nothing to do with fame," the father-of-one, who shares 6-year-old Lea with ex-girlfriend Irina Shayk, began.

"But I was lucky. I got sober at 29 years old, and I've been sober for 19 years. Very lucky," he confessed.

The star battled drug and alcohol addiction in the early 2000s and admitted it greatly affected his work. Cooper previously confessed his condition was at its worst after he was fired from the Jennifer Garner action-thriller series Alias.

The Joy alum also shared that he has a similar relapse in 2011 after his father's passing from cancer.

"I definitely had a nihilistic attitude towards life after, just like I thought 'I'm going to die,'" he told the survival expert. "I don't know, it wasn't great for a little bit until I thought I have to embrace who I actually am and try to find a peace with that, and then it sort of evened out."

Despite his addiction hindering a lot of his work, he did admit it helped him deliver his stellar performance in A Star is Born.

"It made it easier to be able to really enter in there," he explained of playing his character, who struggled with substance abuse in the 2018 film.

"And thank goodness I was at a place in my life where I was at ease with all of that so I could really let myself go," he added. "I've been very lucky with the roles I've had to play. It's been a real blessing. I hope I get to keep doing it."

Cooper has previously discussed his drug and alcohol dependency with GQ in 2013, where he explained it almost "sabotaged [his] whole life."

"I think work was getting f----- up. The one thing that I've learned in life is the best thing I can do is embrace who I am and then do that to the fullest extent, and then whatever happens, happens," he stated at the time.

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"The more steps I do to not do that, the farther I am away from fulfilling any potential I would have," he said.