Inside Al Pacino's History Of Substance Abuse

This next person needs no introduction. Actor Al Pacino's influence on the film industry exceeds most of his fellow actors. The image of Michael Corleone in "The Godfather" continues to hang on fans' walls many decades after the film's premiere. He was nominated for an Oscar for his role in the iconic "Dog Day Afternoon," a film Pacino admits he initially turned down. Pacino may have made a good call when he turned down a role in Star Wars, but it's nearly impossible to picture "Dog Day" without the actor. However, due to substance abuse, we almost didn't get Pacino's famous "Attica!"

In an interview on "Larry King Live" from December 2010, Pacino told Larry King that the film industry thrives off alcohol. "In my day, it was an old part of being — as they used to say to Lawrence Olivier — Sir Lawrence Olivier, what's your favorite part of acting? He'd say the drink after the show," said Pacino. He revealed to King that during an alcohol-induced bender in London, Pacino declined the offer to be in "Dog Day Afternoon." He said it was film producer Marty Bregman who convinced him to stop drinking for a day, clear his head, and read the script again. "I didn't drink for a couple days and I read the script. It was clear. I said, 'why am I not doing this?'" said Pacino. But his busy career was one of the things Pacino said enabled his problem.

Following the success of "The Godfather," Al Pacino went on to film a string of equally acclaimed hits in the same decade, all made possible by a constant bottle in hand."I felt like the fighter that was in Round 8, exhausted in the corner, they're pouring water over my head and rubbing Vaseline on my face, then ding went the bell, and I was back out there in another film," he told The New Yorker. When Pacino's lavish life caught up to him, he was on the path to sobriety.

When discussing his October 2024 memoir "Sonny Boy," Pacino told People that memories from parts of his life were becoming hazy. "I started to forget things at a very young age — they called them blackouts, so I got nervous," he said. Pacino also shared his personal journey in Alcoholics Anonymous meetings and finding a sponsor, all something he recalls in his book. "I went to AA for a while. It's a great place, but it was not for me," he said, noting that his friend Charlie Laughton acted as a great sober mentor.

In terms of the rumor that he's a cocaine addict, he set the record straight, revealing to The New York Times podcast "The Daily" that he's never tried it in his life. Since all of his badass movie characters casually take the drug, it's a popular assumption about Pacino that he does it off-camera too, according to the Hollywood star. "I'm not the kind of guy who takes coke," he said. "Any upper I don't need. I'm up."