'Cocaine was like coffee': Alec Baldwin opens up about 39-year sobriety journey as he recounts drug past

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Alec Baldwin is celebrating his sobriety and has opened up about his journey that began 39 years ago.

The 66-year-old appeared on podcast ‘Our Way with Paul Anka and Skip Bronson’ on Wednesday, May 1, and made many revelations about his past and his ordeals related to the 'Rust' movie shooting death.

When did Alec Baldwin quit drugs?

Baldwin was asked whether he drinks, to which the star replied, “I don't discuss this a lot. I discuss it every now and then when it makes sense. I'm 39 years sober. I got sober February 23, 1985.”

Recalling the time when he moved to LA, ‘The Shadow’ star said, “I had a white-hot problem every day for two years. I think I snorted a line of cocaine from here to Saturn.”

Baldwin said he and his industry friends enjoyed their time. “[We] did one on the rings of Saturn, then we came home — we took it back home. I mean, cocaine was like coffee back then. Everybody was doing it all day long,” he said.

The troubled actor who is going to face trial in ‘Rust’ on-set shooting in July, added, “because I stopped doing drugs, my drinking increased, which they tell you is going to happen. And that did happen. I just started drinking.”

On his drug abuse, Baldwin said, “There was really, really a lot of pain in there,” reports People.

Baldwin calls meditating 'a real pain in the a**'

Co-host Anka asked about the current status of his drinking, “I don't miss drugs at all, but I do miss drinking. I like to drink,” he confessed.

“Because you don't drink and because you don't do drugs, what do you do? Do you meditate?” asked Bronson.

“I do try to meditate,” Baldwin responded.

“Meditating with seven children is like trying to play ping pong on the deck of an aircraft carrier. It's a real pain in the ass, man,” he explained referencing to the kids he share with wife Hilaria Baldwin.

In his 'Rust' shooting case, Alec has cried foul and alleged that the prosecutor unfairly withdrew a plea deal extended in October 2023, purportedly as a means to 'humble' the celebrity.

Cinematographer Halyna Hutchins tragically lost her life on the set of 'Rust' on October 21, 2021, following a discharge from a firearm that Baldwin was handling.

If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, please contact the SAMHSA helpline at 1-800-662-HELP.