‘The Interview’: Anthony Hopkins on Quitting Drinking and Finding God

Podcast: The Daily | Hosted by: David Marchese (The New York Times)
Episode Date: October 25, 2025

Overview

In this profound and revealing interview, legendary actor Sir Anthony Hopkins sits down with David Marchese to discuss his new autobiography, We Did Okay, Kid. The conversation delves deeply into pivotal moments in Hopkins' life: his struggles with alcoholism, his journey to sobriety, poignant family estrangement, and the countless mysteries, epiphanies, and spiritual awakenings that have shaped him. Hopkins reflects on his unlikely rise from a difficult childhood in Wales to global stardom, examining questions of fate, resilience, art, and the ultimate meaning of existence.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Life-Changing Epiphanies and Sobriety

• Turning Point in 1975

  • Hopkins recounts the exact moment he decided to quit drinking (00:47):

    “I was drunk, driving my car here in California in a blackout, no clue where I was going. And it was a moment when I realized that I could have killed somebody or myself…And I realized I was an alcoholic…I went to this intergroup office at 11 o'clock precisely, looked at my watch, and this is the spooky part. Some deep, powerful thought or voice spoke to me from inside and said, ‘It's all over. Now you can start living. And it has all been for a purpose, so don’t forget one moment of it.’”
    [00:47–03:06]

  • Hopkins attributes the transformative voice to a divine or life-force presence:

    “The craving to drink was taken from me or left, I don't know, have any theories except, you know, divinity or that power that we all possess inside us that creates us from birth…That's all I know.”
    [03:08]

• Second Epiphany: Childhood Resolution

  • Hopkins describes an earlier epiphany at age 17 over his poor school report:

    “About five o'clock in the evening…He opened the report and it said, ‘Anthony is way below the standard of this school, which is her death now really.’ My father said, ‘I don't know what's going to happen to you.’…I decided to stop playing the game of being stupid and a dummy…Act as if it is impossible to fail. And that's what I did.”
    [03:41–05:26]

2. Growing Up & Personal History

• Working-Class Welsh Upbringing

  • Son of a baker in Wales; experienced bullying, loneliness, and harsh discipline:

    “I wasn't bright in school. I was hopeless and I was bullied a lot. I was slapped around. But I look back and I think, well, that's part of growing up.”
    [07:50–09:47]

• Acting as Awakening & Vocation

  • Early scholarship to acting school, inspired by Peter O’Toole:

    “I'd never acted in my life but I did an audition. And they gave me a scholarship. How, I don't know…and 10 years later…I was in the theatre…Peter O’Toole…said, ‘I want you to do a film test for me. It’s a film with Katharine Hepburn called The Lion in Winter.’”
    [05:41–06:51]

3. The Philosophy of Taking Life “Not Too Seriously”

• Life as a Game

  • A guiding theme for Hopkins:

    “I am what I am, and I do what I do because I love doing it. It's all in the game, wonderful game called life. No sweat, no big deal. There are no big deals.”
    [06:52–07:36]

• Gratitude and Mortality

  • On aging and gratitude:

    “Now at this age, I look at those poems that I wrote down, or they bring back clear memories of my childhood. And I get very moved by it...I get kind of weepy because I remember the glory of being a child.”
    [07:50–09:47]

  • On facing limitations:

    “We all have problems. We've all got limitations. But I do believe that if you say, ‘Wake up and live, act as if it is impossible…’ For we actually tap into a power that's in ourselves.”
    [10:22]

4. Acting Process & Approach to Art

• Enjoyment Over Need

  • On what acting fulfills for him:

    “A need would sound rather sad. I just enjoy it. I enjoy the scientific fun of it, of learning a script…I suppose on a deep psychological level, I’m trying to escape from what I was.”
    [11:51–12:20]

  • On acting’s meaning:

    “No. It's an entertainment. Maybe it's an educational way of entertaining....If I start taking myself too seriously...It's only a job, it's only acting.”
    [15:38–15:46]

• On ‘Important Films’

  • Dismisses the idea of films as “important,” but acknowledges some were good:

    “No.” (On whether any of his films were ‘important’)
    “Yeah, they were good, but Silence of the Lambs…I am not Hannibal Lecter. I am not a butler…I’m just a mechanic: I show up, no one laughs…how did you play Hannibal Lecter? Well, I played the opposite of what they promised.”
    [20:28–21:14]

5. On Relationships and Estrangement

• Estrangement from His Daughter

  • Refuses to dwell on painful history:

    “My wife, Stella, sent an invitation to come and see us. Not a word of response. So I think, okay, fine, I wish her well, but I’m not going to waste blood over that…If you want to waste your life being in resentment…fine, go ahead. It’s not in my ken…We are imperfect. We’re not saints…But you can’t live like that. You have to say, get over it.”
    [22:45–24:13]

  • On whether he hopes she reads the book:

    “I'm not going to answer that. No, I don’t care.”
    [24:05]

6. On Identity, “Cold Fish,” and Emotional Remoteness

• On Being a “Coldfish”

  • Accepts remoteness as part of his personality and acting:

    “Well, it’s only a turn of phrase. A cold fish. I’m not a coldfish. I have lots of feelings bundled up with them. But…The cold fish is, I am remote. I am a loner. And I’ve never been able to shake that…I’m comfortable just chanting along through my…slightly isolated life.”
    [25:05–26:22]

  • Describes how remoteness shapes his performances:

    “It’s partially intentional…Gradually, I learned. No, pull back, pull back…That’s the more magnetic side.”
    [27:00–27:34]

7. Spirituality, Mortality & the Meaning of Life

• Experience of God

  • On spiritual awakening post-addiction:

    “What happened that morning when that voice said, ‘It’s over now. You can start living. And it has all been for a purpose…’ I knew that was a power way beyond my understanding. Not up there in the clouds, but here, in here. So I chose to call it…God. Easy to spell.”
    [30:22–31:33]

  • On legacy and mortality:

    “I’d never think about it. When they cover the earth over you. That’s it. We move on…what a final curtain…you think, God almighty, what is it all about? The wonder of all that energy that had gone into his life, or anyone’s life…The energy that goes into survival.”
    [31:51–33:56]

  • Final reflection on meaning:

    “The only meaning I can put to it is, is that everything I sought and yearned for found me. I didn’t find. Came to me.”
    [34:15]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Living With Epiphanies:

  “It was vocal, male, reasonable, like a radio voice. And the craving to drink was taken from me or left. I don't know...It's a consciousness, I believe.” – Sir Anthony Hopkins [03:08]

• On Overcoming Self-Doubt:

  “What you do it now? Whispers so what I say shut up. ...You say, wake up and live, act as if it is impossible.” – Sir Anthony Hopkins [10:22]

• On the Role of Remoteness in Acting:

  “Let it come to you. And I think he had that quality as well. And that's the more magnetic side.” – Sir Anthony Hopkins, on learning from Gloria Grahame and Humphrey Bogart’s advice [27:34]

• On Estrangement and Acceptance:

  “If you want to waste your life being in resentment…fine, go ahead…We are imperfect. We’re not saints. ...You have to say, get over it.” – Sir Anthony Hopkins [22:45]

• On Mortality:

  “I look at my hands, you know, my hands are an 87-year-old man's hands. ...The miracle of it, asap, still here. ...To dismiss it is a sacrilege.” – Sir Anthony Hopkins [16:31]

• On Spiritual Fulfillment:

  “Not up there in the clouds, but here, in here. So I chose to call it…God.” – Sir Anthony Hopkins [31:23]

Important Timestamps

• 00:47: Hopkins’ sobriety epiphany
• 03:41: Childhood moment of defiance and resolve
• 05:41: Early acting inspiration (Peter O’Toole)
• 10:22: On dealing with internal doubt
• 15:38: Acting as “only a job”
• 22:45: On estrangement from daughter
• 25:05: Embracing remoteness and “cold fish” label
• 27:00: Remoteness as acting method
• 30:04: Hopkins’ conception of God
• 31:51: On legacy, funerals, and the ‘final curtain’
• 34:15: What has given his life meaning
• 36:41: Poetry reading: “The West Wind” by John Masefield

Closing: Poetry and the Meaning of Home

• Poetry Reading: “The West Wind” by John Masefield
  Hopkins concludes the episode with a moving recitation, evoking nostalgia, belonging, and the mystery of return to one’s spiritual and literal home.
  [36:41–38:55]

  “It’s a warm wind, the west wind, full of birds’ cries. I never hear the west wind but tears are in my eyes…” – Sir Anthony Hopkins

Tone & Style

Sir Anthony Hopkins’ tone throughout the conversation is understated, reflective, irreverently nonchalant, and tinged with both gratitude and wistfulness. He shrugs off grandeur, puncturing the myth of celebrity with plain talk about alcoholism, age, and acting, yet his every word is imbued with the gravity of someone who knows how unlikely and sacred the “game called life” can be.

This candid, philosophical exchange is essential listening/reading—whether you’re a lover of film, a seeker, or simply a human grappling with the puzzle of existence.