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Tom Hardy: I was lucky I didn't get AIDS from drug use
Actor says he could have ended up with AIDS or hepatitis during addiction struggle.
Tom Hardy has said that he was 'out of control' on drink and drugs before he turned his life around, and was lucky that he did not contract AIDS while he was at his lowest.
The actor was addicted to alcohol and crack cocaine until his mid-20s, after which he checked himself into rehab.
Speaking in a charity interview with the Prince's Trust and the Daily Mirror, Hardy said: “I didn’t want anyone to know I was out of control, but I couldn’t hide it.
“Eventually, the body gives up. I was completely kaput. I was lucky I didn’t get hepatitis or AIDS.”
Hardy, who's now one of the UK's leading actors, was at one time facing a lengthy prison sentence after being caught aged 15 in a stolen Mercedes and in possession of a gun.
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But it was after collapsing on Old Compton Street in London in a pool of vomit and blood in 2003 that he sought help.
“I went in thinking I’d do it for a little bit until I can go out and drink and people forgive me. But I did my 28 days, and after listening to people who had been through similar circumstances I realised I did have a problem,” said the actor, now 36.
“I did something particularly heinous that allowed me to wake up. I had to lose something. Sometimes you have to lose something that is worth more to you than your drinking.
“I’m just a frightened bloke,” he added.
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“Everything scares me. Not being in control, not knowing, anticipation, waiting for something to go wrong. Fear itself.
“I’m in a really good space today, but I can always find something to moan about, even sitting on a pedestal. It’s never that far away for me.
“I love what I do, but it’s driven by a fear of not being able to do it. It’s the same with drinking – if I stop then who am I? What have I got?
“I have to watch that drive. It doesn’t matter how well I am doing, I’m only that far away from f***ing it all up.”
Hardy was speaking in support of the Prince's Trust and Samsung's 'Celebrate Success Awards', which recognises young people who have turned their lives around thanks to the charity's help.
