John Mulaney is opening up about a deeply personal moment during Olivia Munn’s recovery, and it’s one that says a lot about how far he’s come in his sobriety journey.
The comedian, 42, appeared on Ted Danson and Woody Harrelson’s SiriusXM podcast Where Everybody Knows Your Name and shared what it was like caring for Munn, 44, after her breast cancer diagnosis, which led to multiple surgeries, including a double mastectomy.
During her recovery, Mulaney recalled bringing her a tray with apple juice, food prepared by her mom, and a collection of prescribed medications, including OxyContin, nerve medication, and Xanax. He said it plainly: he didn’t even feel tempted. “It never crossed my mind that I was holding these medications in my hand,” Mulaney said. “The obsession of it was gone. I thought, “Oh, I’m so far beyond that, and I can be a good butler with the best client’.”
That’s huge, considering Mulaney has battled serious substance abuse issues in the past. He first got sober in 2005 after struggling with alcohol and cocaine. But in 2020, he relapsed and checked himself into rehab. Since then, he’s been sober, and clearly doing the work to stay that way.
He admitted that the transformation still shocks him. “People stay the same in so many ways, and I’m still the same person I was when I was five, in so many ways, but I will admit, it’s a huge change. Just a huge way of looking at everything,” he said. “I’m shocked I did it. I’m shocked I was able to do it.”
Danson asked if he meant staying sober. Mulaney responded, “To actually stick to it in every way. To not have, ‘Well, I still do this.’ To not say, ‘Well, I’m trying.’ There is nothing wrong or shameful about relapse. I just mean I’m shocked, always, that it landed.”
When asked if he ever feels tempted when life gets hard, what Danson called being “aggrieved”, Mulaney was honest: “Oh yeah… I’m very lucky that life’s been so great that it’s always 30 miles out.” Still, he said he’s aware of how the temptation could come back if he lets himself get too tired, too stretched thin. “I’ll be doing something, and I go, ‘Huh, you really want to be this exhausted, stretched thin, a little aggrieved?’”
“The word ‘entitled’ pops into your brain?” Danson asked.
“A little bit, yeah,” Mulaney said. “Luckily those things are miles and miles off.”
He explained that part of his strength comes from staying present and grounded. “That’s part of it, just always knowing, so addicted to the self-control of it in some ways and so happy that I’m always present when I’m with my kids and Olivia and friends and everything.”
Mulaney also touched on the darker days of his past: “I was in a bad neighborhood of my brain for a while.” But now, even if the thoughts return, he knows how to handle them. “You always have respect for it, that it’s still there. You go, ‘I see you. I know you’re there. But that’s not my daily life’.”
His clarity and perspective now aren’t just signs of recovery, they’re proof of long-term healing. He’s not just sober; he’s self-aware, committed, and able to show up fully for Olivia Munn and their child, even in emotionally and physically demanding moments. Carrying OxyContin and Xanax while helping your partner recover from cancer? For the old Mulaney, that might’ve been dangerous territory. But now? He’s just the guy making sure Olivia has juice and her mom’s cooking.
And that quiet confidence, that unshakable presence, is what makes his story even more powerful.
Jamie Wells has a knack for getting the inside scoop on Hollywood’s biggest stars and up-and-coming talent. With a sharp eye for industry trends and an ear for viral moments, Jamie covers everything from red-carpet events to behind-the-scenes drama in movies, TV, and celebrity culture.
Source:https://themusicessentials.com/entertainment/john-mulaney-held-the-pills-that-nearly-ruined-his-life-and-walked-away/