Rob Lowe Reflects on Infamous S-- Tape Scandal: 'The Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me'

Rob Lowe made significant life changes after his s-- tape scandal in the '80s, and his reflections offer a candid view of the impact it had on him.

Lowe's star was on the rise in Hollywood following his roles in Thursday's Child, The Outsiders, St. Elmo's Fire, and About Last Night. However, during his campaign for Michael Dukakis in the 1988 presidential election, a s-- tape surfaced featuring Lowe, 22, and two women: Tara Seburt and 16-year-old Lena Jan Parsons.

In Atlanta, where the video was filmed, the age of consent was 14, meaning both women were legally permitted to engage in sexual activity. However, recording minors is illegal, and Lowe mistakenly believed Parsons was 21 after they met at a nightclub before the incident. Despite the scandal, Lowe settled a lawsuit with Parsons' family out of court and faced no criminal charges. His career took a hit, and he struggled with alcohol addiction for several years before achieving sobriety in 1990.

The 59-year-old actor has since joked about the incident, even referencing it in a Saturday Night Live monologue. He credits his wife, Sheryl Berkoff, for guiding him to a better place. The couple wed in 1991 and welcomed two sons, Matthew and John.

Following his recovery, Lowe enjoyed a successful acting career, appearing in The West Wing, Brothers & Sisters, Parks and Recreation, Code Black, and 9-1-1: Lone Star. Over the years, he has occasionally spoken about the infamous s-- tape.

Here are Lowe's most candid quotes about the scandal:

"I've been fortunate that I've always, always, always worked. Even after the s-- tape was made public, it was like: You're still a professional baseball player, but you're playing for Double or Triple A," Lowe told GQ in 2015. "I lost the role in Titanic that Billy Zane got. But I was never banned from the game."

Lowe revealed that only two people in Hollywood supported him during the aftermath: actress Jodie Foster and producer Don Simpson.

"Jodie and I had done The Hotel New Hampshire together and she sent me a note with a recurring line from John Irving: 'Keep passing the open windows.' She was saying, 'You'll get through it,'" he added.

"Don basically said, 'F--- 'em if they can't take a joke.' Oh, and Hugh Hefner took me aside at one point and said, 'You had to do it. The technology existed.'"

During the Comedy Central Roast of Rob Lowe, the actor poked fun at his scandal with a sketch where he appeared to dance naked to "For Just a Moment" from St. Elmo's Fire before turning to adjust a saxophone.

Comedian Rob Riggle made a dig during the 2016 roast, saying, "Rob, in both your s-- tapes, you appeared with two other people — good God, you can't even carry a s-- tape. You're like the me of s-- tapes. Self-deprecating! Beats you to the punch!"

On SiriusXM's The Jess Cagle Show in 2019, Lowe joked that he "invented" the s-- tape, adding that the "problem" was that he "didn't make any money off of it like everybody does now."

Lowe credited the scandal for motivating him to pursue sobriety. "It's one of the reasons why I got sober. I woke up one day and I was like, 'What am I doing with my life?' I'm 29 years in and, like, people talk, but it's the best thing that ever happened to me," he noted.

"Honestly, I do because it got me sober, and sober got me married. I've been married 29 years and I have two great sons. I don't think any of that happens without going through that scandal."

Lowe told People in 2024: "[The fallout] definitely changed my life at the time, and, in hindsight, I realized it was another step that led me to recovery and reevaluating my life,"

He added: "But the thing that really changed me was not being able to show up for my family and myself."

By the time he checked into rehab in 1990, he felt prepared to tackle his addiction head-on.

"It was relieving, and it was scary, but I learned the tools to change your life if you have the self-honesty to do it. I felt, 'Oh, OK, I'm not alone. I'm not crazy.' I didn't have any doubts and I wasn't like, 'Well, maybe I'll be sober for a little bit,'" he shared.

"I always tell people: you can't get sober — I don't care if it's fentanyl, booze, drugs, coke, pot, gambling, overeating, s-- addiction, whatever, you cannot stop for your job, your wife, your family, your parole officer because you screwed something up. You only are going to stop when you're ready, period."