Daniel Radcliffe Admits Alcohol Addiction Even During Harry Potter Days, But Stopped Drinking in 2010

Daniel Radcliffe, 25, was an unknown 11-year-old kid when he was catapulted to fame courtesy of the "Harry Potter" series of movies. He became an overnight sensation at such a young age and it continued on up until the completion of the last Harry Potter movie, almost 10 years later.

With the loss of his anonymity and the instant fame that he suddenly achieved in an industry marked by endless functions and free-flowing alcohol where people just drink a lot, Radcliffe found himself being reliant on alcohol to deal with his life issues and problems.

He essentially joined the roster of many child actors who never had a normal childhood and who turned to substance abuse to cope. He drank to deal with the fame and to deal with his fear of failure—he was constantly worried that people who were saying he would just be a nobody after Harry Potter ended might just be proven correct. He admitted going to Harry Potter shootings still drunk from the previous night's excesses.

What set Radcliffe apart, however, was that he made a personal decision in 2010 to stop drinking, and he stuck by it. He has become outspoken as to how that decision has helped him come to terms with his issues in a healthier way. He realized that boozing had been "unhealthy and damaging to my body and my social life."

Radcliffe admitted that at 20, alcohol turned him from a fun and polite person into a rude bore.

"I had to make a decision," he explained to the German Gala Men magazine. "I just felt it was better for me to abstain. It was just becoming too easy to switch off my brain with alcohol; as pleasant as that may be after a long day."

"But it meant that I wasn't really dealing with my issues. I'd rather face things than run away from them."

After "Harry Potter" ended, Radcliffe continued to work steadily, starring in the 2012 horror box office smash "The Woman in Black" and playing beat poet Allen Ginsberg in last year's indie biopic "Kill Your Darlings." He also guested on TV shows and performed on stage in both Broadway and London's West End.

He is currently filming the comedy sequel "Now You See Me: The Second Act" and will soon start work on the drama "Brooklyn Bridge" with Brie Larson.

Surely, Radcliffe was able to turn his life around at just the right moment. While other child stars find it more difficult to find their way back, Radcliffe definitely made the right decision and has remained grounded and down to earth.

Radcliffe once had a laugh with British magazine Grazia. "I think people expect me to be an obnoxious brat, because all child stars are, so sometimes I am overzealously polite."