Two years ago, model and actress Cara Delevingne sparked concerns among her fans and loved ones after airport photos of her in a disheveled state surfaced on the internet.
Acknowledging that she wasn’t okay in those images, the star entered rehab, and fast forward to 2024, the Suicide Squad star is now baring it all as she gets refreshingly honest on her sobriety journey.
During a recent interview with U.K.’s Sunday Times, the supermodel opened up about using substances at a startlingly early age, revealing that she first got drunk at the age of 8 during her aunt’s wedding in 2001.
“I got drunk that day. I was eight. What a crazy age to get drunk,” she recalled. “I woke up in my granny’s house in my bedroom with a hangover in a bridesmaid’s dress.”
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Delevingne went on to explain that she became dependent on drugs and alcohol and used them as a coping mechanism.
“I used to think drugs and alcohol helped me cope […] but they didn’t, they kept me sad and super depressed,” she said. “I feel like I’ve got my power back and I’m not being controlled by other things.”
She then reflected on the fire that destroyed her home last March, sharing how sobriety has prevented her from spiraling down after hearing the news.
“It sucks but everyone was safe […] if I’d not been sober, I would still be reeling over that,” she said. “It would still affect me really deeply. Of course, it affected me, it’s super sad […] but I don’t use it as a tool to keep myself sad.”
The Only Murders in the Building star also addressed the paparazzi photos that circulated online in 2022, where she was seen outside an airport on her way to work in London after attending the Burning Man festival.
According to her, the photos served as a serious “wake-up call” for her and it even encouraged her to get sober.
“Listen, I signed up for this, this is my job, it’s what I do. But without that would I be sober now? I would have never been Sally Bowles in the West End, I’m super proud of that,” the Paper Towns actress added, referencing her role in Cabaret.
This isn’t the first time Delevingne got candid about her past struggles with substance use.
In 2023, the actress revealed she was heartbroken after she saw the airport snaps of her and how it prompted her to undergo a 12-step treatment program, which made a “huge difference for her life.”
“I wasn’t ready,” she said. “That’s the problem. If you’re not face-first on the floor and ready to get up again, you won’t. At that point, I really was. All I knew is if I was continuing to go down the road I was, I would either end up dead or, like, doing something really, really stupid.”
In her interview with Variety at the Met Gala this year, Delevingne explained how getting candid and being vocal on her sobriety journey have led her to recovery, and that she wished it could inspire those who are also working on themselves to stay sober.
“I think that’s what I’ve always done with anything in this business,” she said. “Whether it’s being vocal about anxiety, depression, recovery, or anything, it’s just you owe it to people to talk about your struggles, because being in this world is not perfect. No one is perfect. So, to be honest, it’s the least I can do.”
She added, “You’re not alone. If I can do it, anyone can. But you need to communicate and be honest about it as much as you can – especially with yourself.”
Since getting clean, the actress has been busy with her role as Sally Bowles in Cabaret, and on the side, she also launched her new alcohol-free fizz with her sisters Chloe and Poppy Delevigne.
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