Curse of the Christmas film! From drug abuse to schizophrenia and being orphaned at 15 – how life for stars of festive movies has not taken a fairytale path

By their very nature, Christmas movies are supposed to be feel-good films for the whole family to enjoy.

But in recent years, some of the most popular productions have become tinged with sadness due to the tragic circumstances cast members have found themselves in.

The stars of some of the most famous festive favourites have endured difficult paths in life – including Home Alone star Macaulay Culkin‘s very public battle with his parents.

Taylor Momsen, who played Cindy Lou in How the Grinch Stole Christmas, also struggled through an ‘utterly dark hole depression of and substance abuse’ while finding success as the leader of a punk rock band called The Pretty Reckless.

Tragedy further struck for Karolyn Grimes, who made her acting debut aged six in post-war Christmas cracker It’s a Wonderful Life. She lost both her parents before her 16th birthday.

‘My life has never been wonderful,’ the former actress candidly told the Washington Post in 2011.

‘Maybe when I was a child, but not after age 15. And maybe that’s what makes the film so important for me and a lot of other people.’

Here, FEMAIL delves into the curse of the Christmas movie for these stars – and why you may never look at the films the same.

Karolyn Grimes – It’s a Wonderful Life 

When the cameras filming It’s A Wonderful Life stopped rolling, life wasn’t so picture-perfect for the child at its centre. 

Karolyn Grimes, now 84, starred as six-year-old Zuzu in the 1946 movie that follows an angel who saves a father set on killing himself so his family can benefit from the life insurance.

Grimes, who lives in Seattle, starred in 16 movies as a child, including The Bishop’s Wife, starring Cary Grant, David Niven and Loretta Young, and John Ford’s Rio Grande with John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara.

But with her mother suffering from early-onset Alzheimer’s, Grimes revealed that life took a tragic turn as she hit her teenage years.

In an interview with the Washington Post in 2011, the actress explained: ‘My mother died when I was 12, and right after my dad died in a car crash. I was 15 and had no family.’

After this, Karolyn was sent to live with an uncle and aunt in Missouri – and was banned from acting.

She claimed: ‘They were kind of nutso religious fanatics who didn’t believe in movies, dancing, singing, that kind of thing. I don’t think they believed in laughing, either.’

Her aunt cut her off from friends and people she’d met during filming. Instead, she went to college and became a medical tech at a clinic outside Kansas City.

After marrying and giving birth to two daughters, she divorced – and the girls’ father died in a hunting accident.

Following the tragedy, she remarried, had a son and daughter and helped raise her second husband’s three children from a previous marriage.

Then her 18-year-old son committed suicide, and her husband died of cancer. She retired to take care of her teenage daughters, two of whom became single parents.

‘My life has never been wonderful,’ she told the Washington Post. ‘Maybe when I was a child, but not after age 15. And maybe that’s what makes the film so important for me and a lot of other people.

‘The Jimmy Stewart George is suffering terribly in the movie — you can just see it. He’s in Martini’s café and saying to himself, “God, I’m not a praying man, but please show me the way”.’ Gosh, it makes me cry,’ she said.

Grimes remembers being paid $75 a week – about $830 today – or around $10,000 over the 12-week shoot of It’s a Wonderful Life.

She only remembered taking part in the film thirty years later, when she saw footage out of the corner of her eye on the television. She recognised the faces and ‘then it hit me. I was in that movie. I was Zuzu.’

Taylor Momsen – How the Grinch Stole Christmas 

Taylor Momsen, now 31, began her career with her breakout role as Cindy Lou in How The Grinch Stole Christmas – the film adaptation of the Dr Seuss tale – at the age of seven.

Asked why the movie still resonates with so many people, the actress previously told Today: ‘I think that people love The Grinch just simply because the core of the story is so sweet and it’s so heartwarming and it has such a good message.

That no matter what age, touches your heart, I think that that’s an amazing thing to be a part of.’

Following her outing in The Grinch, Momsen went on to land roles in Hansel and Gretel, and Spy Kids 2 but then her career went quiet for a while.

She was one of the top three candidates for the part of Hannah Montana, which eventually went to Miley Cyrus but her profile skyrocketed again when she landed the part of preppy teenage socialite Jenny Humphrey in the show, Gossip Girl.

Momsen stayed in the series for several seasons, but left in season four to concentrate on her music career and embrace her avant-garde style.

Some commenters alluded to her reportedly being a ‘diva’ and TV personality Tim Gunn had nothing nice to say after working with her on Gossip Girl.

After landing a guest spot on the show he told E! News of Momsen: ‘What a diva! She was pathetic, she couldn’t remember her lines, and she didn’t even have that many. I thought to myself “Why are we all being held hostage by this brat?”‘

According to Gunn, Momsen spent all day on her Blackberry instead of learning her lines and that the director told him it happened ‘day in, day out, my life.’

Momsen announced that she was retiring from acting shortly afterward at the age of 18. The Missouri native’s heart has clearly always been in music and she even recorded a song called Why Can’t I Find You? for The Grinch soundtrack.

At eight, she wrote a song called Blackout, which The Hills star Heidi Montag went on record for her debut album, Superficial.

In 2009 her band The Pretty Reckless landed a deal with Interscope Records. They have released two successful albums and Momsen now spends her time touring with the band around the world.

Her image today is a far cry from the cheery youngster who appeared in The Grinch or her squeaky clean Gossip Girl character, with her trademark style including peroxide hair, thick black eyeliner, ripped fishnet tights and leather.

She has described shows in which she invited fans onstage, but had to stop because it got ‘a little violent,’ telling Rolling Stone how her hair was ripped out and she was ‘sexually assaulted in an uncool way’ as one fan was ‘a little too aggressive for my liking.’

In 2021, she also revealed how she struggled through an ‘utterly dark hole of depression and substance abuse’ she lived through following the death of two friends in 2017 and 2018.

First, on May 18, 2017, Soundgarden vocalist and guitarist Chris Cornell died at age 52 by suicide.

The Pretty Reckless had been touring with Soundgarden at the time and she considered the band one of her favourites ‘in the world’ — and the loss of Chris to be ‘devastating.’

‘It crushed me in a way that I can’t explain and I was not prepared for as a person,’ she told Metro.co.uk. ‘I wasn’t in a good place mentally to be public. 

‘I cancelled touring, I went home. I needed to attempt to process what had happened and kind of get my s**t together.’

She had just been starting to feel a bit better and was writing music again when she was hit with another tragedy: the death of record producer Kato Khandwala in a motorcycle accident on April 25, 2018.

‘It was the nail in the coffin for me,’ Taylor said, adding that they were ‘so immensely close.’ ‘He was so much more than a producer. He was a fifth member of the band and my best friend in the world.’

After that, she spiralled, and had a much harder time recovering from the back-to-back losses. 

Momsen has said that she prefers singing to acting, so it’s unlikely we’ll see her return to our screens in any film role – let alone a heart-warming festive one, any time soon.

Recent photos posted to Instagram show Momsen performing at venues around the world. Away from the stage, candid snaps show her meeting with friends, going to the gym and taking some well-earned rest.

Devin Ratray – Home Alone 

Devin Ratray, now 47, was well-known for playing Buzz McCallister, Kevin’s oldest brother who often got him in trouble, in the Christmas blockbuster Home Alone, which he starred in when he was just 13.

He went on to become a regular on MTV’s reality series Damage Control and starred in a few movies and TV shows like Dennis the Menace, Little Monsters, the 2007 movie Serial, sci-fi flick Surrogates, suspense thriller Elevator, Nebraska (opposite Bruce Dern and Will Forte), Blue Ruin in 2013, crime drama Hustlers, and Steven Soderbergh’s Kimi.

He also ventured into music, and sings and plays guitar in a band called Little Bill and the Beckleys.

In 2021, he reunited with some of his Home Alone cast members in Disney+’s Home Sweet Home Alone movie. Instead of playing Buzz, Ratray returns as a police officer.

But in February 2024, Devin Ratray pleaded guilty to two counts of domestic violence.

As a result, the 47-year-old actor has avoided jail time, resolving his years-long case in Oklahoma.

According to TMZ, he was sentenced to three years of probation and ordered to complete a Batterers Intervention Program and undergo a drug/alcohol assessment.

Additionally, he must cover court expenses and maintain zero contact with the victim, his ex-girlfriend. Ratray appeared in court via a video link along with his lawyer. 

It comes after last month the star was hospitalized and in critical condition. He has since been discharged and was reportedly ‘back home resting on doctor’s orders.’  

In December 2021, he was arrested on domestic violence charges after he allegedly strangled his girlfriend in an Oklahoma hotel room. 

He reportedly became angry with his partner while the two were drinking at a bar after she didn’t charge two female fans for his autograph.

After they returned to their hotel room at Hyatt Place Oklahoma City, Ratray allegedly pushed her onto the bed before putting one hand on her throat and the other on her mouth.

‘The victim had trouble breathing while she was being strangled and while the defendant’s hand was over her mouth,’ according to an affidavit.

Ratray also allegedly told her, ‘This is how you die,’ as he continued to choke her. The girlfriend then bit Ratray’s hand as she attempted to scream for help.

He stopped choking her but allegedly began violently punching her afterward. She managed to break free from Ratray’s grasp and ran out of the room.

Ratray allegedly punched her against a desk when she returned to the room to collect her belongings.

The victim was found with multiple injuries including bruising under her left eye, marks under her right eye, marks above the left side of her lip, a bruise on her chest and a sore arm, according to KFOR.

The pair broke up following the violent fight. At the time, a police source revealed that Ratray ‘turned himself in and was processed through and bonded out,’ according to Fox News.

He was released from custody after posting a $25,000 bond and denied the allegations.

Last year, news broke that he was also being investigated by New York authorities over allegations that he raped a woman in New York in 2017. 

After hearing about the assault case, Lisa Smith contacted prosecutors about a police report she had filed in 2017 accusing that actor of raping her.

She told CNN that she wanted to know why the case hadn’t been pursued and was informed that authorities thought she wanted to remain anonymous and didn’t want to press charges.

Smith claims that she was friends with the actor for around 15 years before the alleged assault, adding that she met her brother and Ratray along with another friend for a drink in New York directly before the assault.

The group then went to Ratary’s apartment for another drink, where he insisted that Smith have a specific glass.

She says that she became exhausted soon after drinking it, and Ratray encouraged her to stay over and sleep on the couch.

Smith believes that she was drugged by the star, saying: ‘I remember waking up and I couldn’t move.

‘I couldn’t really open my eyes, but I could hear what was happening and I could feel what was happening. I knew that the other two people were gone and I was still on the couch.’

She claims that the assault went on for what felt like an ‘eternity’ and she was only able to regain control of her body at around 2pm the next day when she fled the apartment.

The day after the attack Smith told a friend, her sister and one of her brothers what happened, and then confronted Ratray in a text message.

He denied the assault, so Smith filed a police report a few weeks later and met up with an NYPD detective in Salt Lake City – who wrongly marked that she did not want to prosecute.

Smith added that she is ‘devastated’ that police failed to investigate her allegations when she came forward.

At the time of the incident she travelled from out of state to be interviewed at the Manhattan District Attorney’s office and provided them with the clothes she wore the night of the attack.

She added: Why would I have met with the DA in the first place, years ago, if I wasn’t willing to press charges?…This was all very upsetting to me.’

‘Seeing that he was accused of assaulting someone else made me realize that I needed to do whatever I could to prevent him from hurting even more women.’

Smith claims that she met with a prosecutor from the Sex Crimes Unit at the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office in May, who apologised for the way the case had been handled.

When contacted by CNN, Ratray said he recalled the evening with Smith but denied her claims that he raped her.

A spokesperson from the district attorney’s office confirmed they ‘are in touch’ with Smith but declined to discuss the handling of the case, according to an August 25, 2022 report by Dailymail.com.

Jim Carrey – How the Grinch Stole Christmas

He became the first actor to ever receive a $20 million paycheck for a role in a film and with 2024 marking the 30th anniversary of the start of his blockbuster career, Jim Carrey should still be a Hollywood heavyweight.

But unsavoury allegations surrounding the tragic suicide of his on-off girlfriend have cast a dark shadow over the How the Grinch Stole Christmas star and led to the cancellation of his comedy career.

The turning point came in 2015 when Cathriona White, 30, an Irish make-up artist took her own life, and lurid details about their relationship began to emerge, including notes in which she accused the actor – who was 25 years her senior – of introducing her to debauched life of sex and drugs and ‘giving her’ herpes.

While Carrey flew to her native Cappawhite, Co Tipperary, for the funeral, a rift with her family soon developed and her mother and estranged husband sued the actor, claiming he’d caused her mental distress that contributed to her suicide.

The case was thrown out and he swiftly retreated from the limelight, but after four years away from mainstream cinema, the Canadian actor began a slow and tentative return to film in 2020 with a starring role in Sonic The Hedgehog, the first of three animated adventures based around the escapades of Sega’s greatest export.

Whilst promoting the films sequel in 2022, Carrey, 62, said he was retiring from acting and yet this month he was back on the red carpet for the UK premiere of the third installment,  joking that he ‘needs the money’. 

Speaking in London, the Canadian actor suggested his personal fortune – once thought to be as much as $120million – has dwindled.

‘I came back to this universe because I get to play a genius, which is a bit of a stretch,’ he said. ‘And you know, I bought a lot of stuff and I need the money, frankly.’

Whatever the truth about his financial situation, one thing is clear – Carey is not ready to retire, despite claiming two years ago: ‘I have enough. I’ve done enough’.

Now the question is whether he will be able to escape the shadow that the demise of his relationship with Ms White cast over his glittering career.  

The couple met in 2012, when Cathriona was 27 and Carrey was 52, and they had an on-off relationship until 2015, when she was found dead from a prescription drug overdose.

Her death was ruled as suicide by the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner, and Carrey was a pallbearer at her funeral in Ireland and was pictured comforting her friends and family.

In the weeks that followed, however, a picture of the couple’s tumultuous relationship began to emerge when a note Cathriona wrote two years before her death gave a damning description of how she felt the actor treated her. 

The note written on her iPad was discovered by lawyers working on behalf of her mother Brigid Sweetman, and estranged husband, Mark Burton, who filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Carrey, saying he gave her the pills to kill herself after obtaining them in a false name and giving her STDs.   

‘You did good things for me but being with you broke me down as a person, Jim. I was promised Jekyll and instead I got Hyde,’ she wrote in the note. 

‘Because I love you I would have stuck out Hyde all year and done everything he wanted to be with Jekyll for 5 of those, but you threw me away when you absorbed anything worthwhile that was left of me.’

She also spoke of the shame she felt over having STDs, which she claimed she’d contracted from Carrey. 

‘You have not thought about the stigma I have to live with for the rest of my life, you have not apologized or once asked is there something you can do to make it better or even felt bad for it,’ she wrote. 

‘You gave me HSV and HPV, I want you to apologize for it because you care enough to. I want you to understand that however little a thing seems to you, it ruins a girl’s life.

‘I want you to take care when you are with other girls and pay attention to your body your actions effect people.’

The Irish make-up artist also said: ‘Before you, I might not have had very much but I had respect, I was a happy person.

‘I loved life, I was confident and I felt good in my skin and was proud of most decisions I made, I met you, you introduced me to cocaine, prostitutes, mental abuse and disease.

‘You did good things for me but being with you broke me down as a person, Jim.’

Texts between the pair showed how Cathriona became concerned she had an STD in January 2013, and texted Carrey, who replied: ‘Aggravated folacles [sic] or bumps are normal when you shave or have vigorous sex.’

The following month White again wrote to Carrey about finding ‘a couple of bumps’ and wanting to get ‘checked’, telling him that she had tested before they got together so she couldn’t have caught an STD from anyone else. 

In response, Carrey texted back and ended their relationship. 

‘Don’t want to talk anymore… I’m done. You have become too much drama,’ he told her. 

In response to her family’s legal action, Carrey then launched a counter lawsuit, dropping the bombshell that he had already paid Cathriona an undisclosed sum of money in 2013 to settle her STD claims, while demanding her mother and husband pay him back three times the original settlement.  

He described White as a ‘beautiful but immature and emotionally damaged woman’ at the start of their relationship and alleged that her former attorney took advantage of her ‘warm and exciting’ romance with the star to profit. 

The actor also said that Miss White had blackmailed him by threatening to go public with what he said were false claims that he had given her sexually transmitted diseases unless he paid her millions of dollars.

Carrey was later cleared after his attorney found that Miss White had edited the information on a friend’s STD test to make it look like it had belonged to her so that she could prove she was clean before entering into a relationship with Carrey.

Despite their earlier legal battle, the pair did get back together in 2015.

The actor said he forgave her and that the pair continued building a future and started working on a co-habitation agreement so that she could permanently move in with him. 

She was upset, he said, by his insistence that she sign a non-disclosure confidentiality agreement but that she otherwise seemed ‘happy’ until her 30th birthday on September 14.

He claimed that her biological mother Brigid, who she’d been estranged from, sent her an upsetting message on Facebook, saying she was ‘worthless’ and would ‘never amount to anything’.

It was this and her apparent guilt over ‘extorting’ him two years earlier which prompted her suicide, according to Carrey.  

White, who according to loved ones had depressive tendencies, wrote several suicide notes before she took her own life. One, written in 2012, describes Carrey as a ‘strong and wonderful human being’.

‘I love Jim and I’m sorry I brought turmoil into his life,’ she wrote.

In May 2013, another note, written to her attorney, told a different story. It demanded that the world know he was responsible for her death.

‘I want you to get together and release to the press about all the physical abuse, mental abuse and diseases that Jim gave me. Unfortunately, I don’t have the the words to put to paper I am too numb,’ she wrote.

Her final suicide note, which were discovered near her body in 2015, was addressed to the actor.

It showed no signs that she was angry with him but hinted that their relationship had come into trouble.

‘Jim, I thought we had chosen each other. I believed it meant something and I let myself relax in your arms in the safety of being sure of one thing.. us.

‘If everything went sideways we had each other. I’ve spent 3 days now in disbelief that you’re not here. I thought when I saw you it would be OK again and it’s not,’ it said.

She signed it off: ‘I love you, please forgive me I’m just not for this world. Peace and love to all your hearts.’

Before her body was found, Carrey had sent a text message asking where his missing prescription painkillers were.

The LA Coroner’s report – obtained by Daily Mail Online – showed that Cathriona had taken the actor’s anti-inflammatory pills along with a cocktail of other drugs to end her life. 

Her body was found by friends who had gone to her residence after a third party told them she had broken up with Carrey the week before.

Meanwhile, suffering from depression from a young age, the comedian also took Prozac, an anti-depressant, in the 90s. 

He has previously admitted it is only ‘valuable for short periods of time’ and prevents people from ‘addressing the real problem’.

‘I was on it for a long time,’ he said in 2004. ‘It may have helped me out of a jam for a little bit. I don’t take anything now, I rarely drink coffee. No alcohol and no drugs, life is too beautiful.’

Carl Swizter – It’s a Wonderful Life 

Carl Swizter had a minor role in It’s a Wonderful Life as Mary Hatch’s date to the high school dance.

Audiences will remember that the disgruntled teen – whose date has been distracted by the hero George Bailey – then causes the gym dancefloor to open onto the swimming pool below.

The actor had starred in the comedy series Our Gang as a child and was famous for his warbling singing voice.

According to History.com, Carl’s mother had taken him and his brother to the Hal Roach studios – who had signed Laurel and Hardy – during a family vacation to California.

Following this, Carl was cast as Alfafa in the series which followed a group of children and their adventures.

After It’s a Wonderful Life, Carl struggled to find work and began taking odd jobs and working as a bartender. During this time, he also reportedly had several run-ins with the police.

In January 1959, Carl went to the home of Moses Stilz to demand he pay him some $50 he believed he was owed.

After a fight broke out, Moses shot Carl – who was only 31 when he later died of his injuries.

Macaulay Culkin – Home Alone 

At the age of 10, Macaulay Culkin sky-rocketed to fame when he was cast as Kevin McCallister in the first Home Alone film in 1990.

By the time he was 12 years old, the child star had reached millionaire status thanks to his performances in Richie Rich and The Good Son – making him the family’s breadwinner with the ability to reportedly bring in £6m with every performance.

Before bagging the life-changing role, Macaulay had been used to a much more modest lifestyle – as his former actor father Kit worked in a parish church while his mother Patricia held down a job in a call centre.

Speaking to New York magazine in 2001, Home Alone’s casting director Billy Hopkins claimed: ‘They were so poor I had to use my own money to make sure that he got to and from rehearsal.

‘Macaulay would crawl under the bleachers at the theater to look for change that had fallen out of people’s pockets. They were like the Beverly Hillbillies.’

What’s more, Macaulay’s younger brother Kieran told Vanity Fair 2018 that the family-of-nine’s New York apartment didn’t provide much in the way of privacy.

Describing how the space was effectively ‘just a hallway’, he added: ‘There were no separating doors, except for the bathroom, which didn’t have a lock.

‘They raised seven kids in that apartment – for years! They just kept bringing babies home to this little space.’

As such, Kit and Patricia used their son’s earnings to buy the family a huge brownstone in New York’s Upper East Side.

A 1993 New York Times article alleged that Kit – who took on the role of Maculay’s agent – had given his son a diva-like reputation in Hollywood thanks to his hands-on approach, which resulted in The Good Son hitting theatres a year late.

Four years after his big screen debut, Kit and Patricia’s 20-year relationship came to an end – prompting the feuding couple to battle over who would have custody of the child actor.

Setting out her argument, Patricia told a US court that Kit had a problem with ‘excessive drinking’ and accused him of ‘physical abuse and unfaithful behaviour’.

In denying her claims, Kit branded his ex-wife an ‘inept’ businesswoman as he laid out his case to continue managing Macaulay.

When he was only 15 years old, Macaulay sued both his parents for £13m and was successful in ‘divorcing’ them as his legal guardians – meaning they no longer had access to his fortune.

Appearing on Marc Maron’s WTF podcast in 2018, Macaulay claimed his father had been ‘physically and mentally’ abusive.

Describing how Kit was ‘jealous’ of him, the actor added: ‘Everything he tried to do in life, I excelled at before I was 10 years old.’

In 2016, Kit told the Daily Mail: ‘I don’t consider [Macaulay] a son anymore.’

As a result of his ongoing difficulties with his parents, Macaulay – who was now richer than his wildest dreams – struggled with life in the limelight.

Speaking to The Guardian in 2000, Macaulay explained how his work impacted his adolescence and said his father treated him as though he were a ‘machine’.

He said: ‘I remember one time near the end of school year, I was walking down the road with my mother saying what I wanted to do this summer and suddenly I knew there was something she did not want to tell me.

‘She said: ‘Don’t make plans this summer. You might be working.’ Then you find out they had already signed the contract.’

‘It started feeling like a chore,’ he told Esquire in a profile published in February 2020. ‘I started vocalizing that and not being heard: I was saying, ‘I wanna go to school’ – I haven’t done a full year of school since first grade.’

In the late 1990s, Macaulay took a break from acting and married Supernatural actress Rachel Miner – who was 17 at the time – when he was just 18 years old.

Two years after their separation in 2002, Macaulay was charged with possession of marijuana.

In the years that followed, the child star appeared increasingly gaunt in public – sparking concern about his rumoured drug habit.

From 2002 to 2011, Macaulay – who has never publicly spoken about his love life – was in a relationship with That 70s Show actress Mila Kunis.

Appearing on Dax Shepard’s Armchair Expert podcast in 2018, the now mother-of-two said her break-up with Macaulay was ‘horrible’.

Giving rare insight into their romance, Mila said: ‘I f**ked up. I was an a** in my 20s and I’ll be the first to admit it. And that’s something that took me a long time to come out and be like, ‘Yeah, you know what, I was a d**k,’ and accept it and I own it now.’

She didn’t say exactly what she did to her former beau, but revealed: ‘And it’s f**ked up what I did and it’s f**ked up how I did it. When I got to be single I said, ‘I just need to figure myself out’. I genuinely need to know why I did what I did, and, like regroup myself as a human being.’

Following their break-up, Macaulay hit back at reports that he was addicted to drugs. Speaking to The Guardian in 2016, he said: ‘No, I was not pounding six grand of heroin every month or whatever.’

In 2020, he addressed ‘people who assume he’s crazy, damaged, weird, cracked, or a kook,’ insisting to Esquire that while he ‘played with some fire’ early on in his career, he has never needed professional help and now feels ‘relatively well-adjusted.’

‘I’ve never been to rehab or anything like that,’ he pointed out. ‘I’ve never had to clean out that way. There were certain times when I had to catch myself, once or twice.

‘”You’re having too good a time, Mack.” … But I never went so far down that road where I needed outside help.’

At the time, he admitted that he ‘didn’t do drugs recreationally’ anymore, but that doing them when he was younger helped make him the ‘person he is today.’

‘I wouldn’t be the person I am today if I hadn’t had drugs in my life at some point or another,’ he said. ‘I had some illuminating experiences – but also it’s f**kin’ stupid, too, you know?

‘So besides the occasional muscle relaxer, no, I don’t do drugs recreationally. I still kinda drink like a fish. I drink and I smoke.

‘But I don’t touch the [hard drugs]. I do love them. They’re like old friends. But sometimes you outgrow your friends.’

The 44-year-old now appears happier than ever – having been in a relationship with Brenda Song – who shot to fame on The Suite Life of Zach and Cody – for the past seven years. They share two children together.

The Home Alone star was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2023 – with his on-screen mother Catherine O’Hara introducing him in an emotional speech.

Jake Lloyd – Jingle All The Way

He played Jamie the adorable son of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s character Howard Langston in the 90s Christmas classic but Jake Lloyd is a far cry from his festive alter-ego these days.

In 2015 at the age of 26, the American actor was arrested after he lead police on a high speed car chase.

In April the following year his mother Lisa revealed that her son was suffering from schizophrenia and he was then transferred to a psychiatric facility.

Aside from the festive classic Jake also starred as Anakin Skywalker in Star Wars the Phantom Menace with Natalie Portman, Ewan McGregor and Liam Neeson.

The film made a total of $2billion from worldwide box office receipts and rentals. He was only 10 years old at the time.

Following his brush with fame, Lloyd quit acting altogether claiming that the role had made his childhood a ‘living hell.’

‘Other children were really mean to me,’ he said in a 2012 interview. ‘They would make the sound of the light saber every time they saw me. It was totally mad.’

Lloyd said at one point he was doing around 60 interviews a day. ‘My entire school life was really a living hell – and I had to do up to 60 interviews a day.’

Liam Neeson – Love Actually 

He’s made a name for himself as a formidable Hollywood action star – but Liam Neeson’s role in Love Actually is arguably one of his most famous performance to date.

In the hit, ensemble cast festive film, Liam plays Daniel – a grieving widower who helps his stepson Sam find the confidence to ask out his dream girl.

Tragically, life imitated art just six years after the movie was released when Liam’s wife Natasha Richardson was involved in a fatal skiing accident.

In 2009, the Parent Trap actress – who shared two young sons with Liam – was in the middle of a beginner’s skiing lesson in Quebec, Canada, when she fell and hit her head.

Unaware of her serious her injury was, Natasha returned to her hotel where she complained of a headache two hours later. A young ski instructor at the complex said the star was ‘disoriented, confused and vomiting’ when the ambulance was called.

After falling into a coma, Natasha was flown to Lenox Hill Hospital New York where she tragically died of a epidural hematoma – which occurs when a skull fracture tears a blood vessel. 

Liam Neeson, arrived in Montreal from a Toronto film set on a private jet. He kept an all-night vigil by her side but was told his wife was brain dead.

At the time, the family confirmed the tragic news with this statement: ‘Liam Neeson, his sons, and the entire family are shocked and devastated by the tragic death of their beloved Natasha. 

‘They are profoundly grateful for the support, love, and prayers of everyone, and ask for privacy during this very difficult time.’

Five years later, Liam revealed in an emotional interview with Anderson Cooper how he still didn’t feel as though his wife’s death was ‘real’. 

Discussing her final hours, the actor said: ”She was on life support… I went in to her and I told her I loved her, said “Sweetie, you’re not coming back from this, you’ve banged your head.”‘

”She and I had made a pact, if any of us got into a vegetative state that we’d pull the plug. That was my immediate thought,”Okay, these tubes have to go. She’s gone.”‘ 

‘[Her death] was never real,’ he told Cooper. ‘It still kind of isn’t. There’s periods now in our New York residence when I hear the door opening, especially the first couple of years… anytime I hear that door opening, I still think I’m going to hear her.’

Neeson told Cooper his grief is less immediate but still a part of his life.

‘It hits you. It’s like a wave. You just get this profound feeling of instability… the Earth isn’t stable anymore and then it passes and it becomes more infrequent, but I still get it sometimes.’

However, the actor said the family takes comfort in the fact that Natasha lives on in three other people.

He explained: ”Donated three of her organs, so she’s keeping three people alive at the moment. Her heart, her kidneys and her liver. It’s terrific and I think she would be very thrilled and pleased by that.’

In 2021, Natasha and Liam’s son Michael – who is also an actor – admitted that he wished he ‘could have adult conversations’ with his mother and said he was always a ‘mama’s boy’.

He told The Times: ”I was a mama’s boy growing up and she was really my best friend. I mean we were all a close family, but Danny [his younger brother] was my dad’s boy and I was my mom’s boy, for sure.’

Going on to discuss how he felt following her tragic accident, he went on: ‘It was so sudden. When it’s unexpected and it’s just a complete freak accident, it really sort of messes with your mind, whether you believe in fate or not.’

Micheál added that the experience of losing his mother at such a young age made him go through ‘a bit of a head spin’ and he had years of ‘distracting’ himself from the loss, but said he still often gets hit by grief suddenly.

Kelly Preston – Jack Frost 

Over the course of her 37-year career, Kelly Preston starred in the hit movies Jerry Maguire, What a Girl Wants and The Last Song.

However, it’s her performance in Jack Frost that will resonate with younger viewers most.

In 1998, the mother-of-three appeared in the Christmas movie alongside Michael Keaton and Joseph Cross.

In the hit film, Michael Keaton plays Jack – a father who is killed in a car accident and returns to life as a snowman to put things right with his son.

Tragically, Kelly passed away of breast cancer in 2020 at the age of 57.

The actress left behind her two children Ella Bleu and Benjamin and husband John Travolta.

Kelly and John met while making the 1987 film The Experts and while Preston was married to actor Kevin Gage; they divorced that year after two years of marriage.

Preston then got engaged to Travolta in 1991 in Gstaad, Switzerland. Preston and Travolta were married at a midnight ceremony in Paris later that year. 

Announcing the tragic news, John issued a statement saying his wife had ‘fought a courageous fight with the love and support of so many’. 

The couple’s 20-year-old daughter Ella said she had ‘never met anyone as courageous’ as her mother as she paid her own emotional tribute today.

She said at the time: ‘I have never met anyone as courageous, strong, beautiful and loving as you.

‘Anyone who is lucky enough to have known you or to have ever been in your presence will agree that you have a glow and a light that never ceases to shine and that makes anyone around you feel instantly happy. Thank you for being there for me no matter what.

‘Thank you for your love. Thank you for your help and thank you for making this world a better place.

‘You have made life so beautiful and I know you will continue to do so always. I love you so much mama.’

However, this wasn’t the first tragedy to have struck the Travolta-Preston family.

In 2009, the couple’s 16-year-old Jett died after hitting his head in the bath during a seizure at their holiday home in the Bahamas. 

Their son had been hospitalised with Kawsaki disease as a baby and was also on the autism spectrum.

Dozens of relatives flew to Grand Bahama to comfort John Travolta and Kelly Preston, who said that ‘Jett was the most wonderful son that two parents could ever ask for’.

‘We are heartbroken that our time with him was so brief. We will cherish the time that we had with him for the rest of our lives,’ they said at the time.

Kelly Preston would later say: ‘Everybody grieves in their own way. I felt at times like I was drowning. It felt like a sea of wet blankets.’

The shock of Jett’s death was followed by a legal row with an ambulance driver and lawyer who were accused of trying to extort $25million from the couple by threatening to reveal sensitive details about the death. 

Travolta testified during a criminal trial that ended in a mistrial and was prepared to testify a second time, but decided to stop pursuing the case. He cited the severe strain the case and his son’s death had caused the family. 

Travolta described his son’s death in 2009 as the ‘worst thing that ever happened in my life’ and told how the Church of Scientology had helped him and his wife through their grief. 

Richard Attenborough – Miracle on 34th Street

Richard Attenborough starred in over 38 movies before his sad passing at the age of 90 in 2014.

And for some viewers, he will always be remembered for his touching performance in the 1994 Christmas classic ‘Miracle on 34th Street’.

However, the late actor, who was born in Cambridge, was the older brother of Sir David Attenborough, was also touched by tragedy in his life.

Following his death, it was revealed that he had asked for his ashes to be placed with those of his beloved daughter and granddaughter who he lost in the Boxing Day tsunami.  

Probate records released yesterday reveal that the Labour peer and actor, who died aged 90 in August 2014, left an estate of £1.5 million in the UK and a request in his will that he be cremated. 

He asked for a third of his ashes to be ‘interred in casket together with or alongside’ the ashes of his daughter and granddaughter in a vault at St Mary Magdalene Church, Richmond, on the outskirts of London. 

Jane Holland, who was a charity arts officer, and her daughter Lucy died when their holiday villa in Khao Lak, southern Thailand, was destroyed by giant waves.

Jane’s husband Michael, a shipbroker, and son Samuel, an actor, escaped because they were playing golf on a course a mile or so inland.

Their other daughter Alice, then 17, suffered serious injuries but survived.

Mrs Holland’s mother-in-law Audrey, 81, who was on holiday with them, also died in the disaster.

Following the natural disaster, Richard said that his loved ones were still very much alive in his memory.

He said: ‘I can talk to people about Jane now, although sometimes I can’t get the words out. I can also see her. I can feel her touch. I can hear her coming into a room.

‘She comes in laughing or excited or determined, but always full of commitment. That was the very essence of Jane – commitment. And music.’

Bruce Willis – Die Hard 

Bruce Willis starred in many hit films over the course of his career – but the Die Hard franchise remain fan favourites decades on.

In February, the star’s family announced that the actor had been diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia.

The Hollywood icon, 68, withdrew from acting last year as he began his fight with the illness that caused his language abilities to deteriorate – and now his condition has ‘progressed’ according to a joint statement from his family on Thursday.

FTD affects the lobes of the brain behind the forehead, which deal with behavior, problem-solving, planning and emotions –  with symptoms including personality changes, obsessive behavior and speaking difficulties.

The statement, from his wife Emma Heming, ex-wife Demi Moore and five daughters and posted on The Association for Frontotemporal Degeneration’s website read: ‘Our family wanted to start by expressing our deepest gratitude for the incredible outpouring of love, support and wonderful stories we have all received since sharing Bruce’s original diagnosis. 

‘In the spirit of that, we wanted to give you an update about our beloved husband, father and friend since we now have a deeper understanding of what he is experiencing.’

FTD occurs when nerve cells in the lobes behind the forehead die and the pathways that connect them change. 

The left temporal lobe is involved in the meaning of words and the names of objects. The right recognizes faces and familiar objects. 

Symptoms are different from just the memory loss that is associated with Alzheimer’s disease. 

These may include; personality changes, such as becoming tactless, uninterested in others and unsympathetic, repeated and compulsive movements, such as continued use of certain phrases, hoarding and obsession over timekeeping, craving unhealthy food and forgetting table manners, speaking difficulties, including slow speech, grammatical errors and asking the meaning of familiar words like ‘bread’.

Willis had reportedly been struggling with cognitive issues on the sets of his films for years – and even needed an earpiece to feed him lines.

A unnamed source told Page Six his declining cognitive ability had been an open secret in Hollywood as the actor repeatedly had trouble acting in his films. 

Over the course of his four-decade career, Variety reports, his movies have grossed over $5 billion worldwide. 

James Caan – Elf 

James Caan became a household name thanks to his role in The Godfather – but his appearance in the Christmas Elf opened him up to a whole new generation of fans.

The actor – who passed away at the age of 82 last year –  played Walter in the hit 2003 movie, which also starred Will Ferrell, Zooey Deschanel and Jon Favreau. 

In the film, Walter plays a father who doesn’t prioritise spending time with his family and hates the spirit of Christmas.

James’ own personal life wasn’t exactly smooth-sailing either – with the star marrying four times.

However, the loss of his beloved sister Barbara in 1981 devastated James and caused him to spiral into drug addiction. 

Barbara, who was also an actress and worked as the president of James’ production company, passed away at the age of 38 from leukaemia. 

Speaking to The Independent in 2021, he explained: ‘Barbara was like my best friend.

‘She was the only person I was afraid of in the world. When she died, passion became this whole thing with me. That’s what I loved about my sister: she was just so passionate about whatever she did. 

‘I started doing cocaine, which is like a death sentence. That lasted a while.’

As a result, James quit acting and avoided the spotlight – choosing to coach his son’s baseball team for a while. 

During this time, James also battled clinical depression and only returned to acting five years later, when he was offered a role in Gardens of Stones in 1987. 

Joe Pesci – Home Alone

Pesci, now 79, has had a major career across decades – acting in movies like Raging Bull, Lethal Weapon, Goodfellas, The Irishman, JFK, My Cousin Vinny, and Home Alone – in which he played one of the thieves, named Harry.

In 1999, he announced his retirement from acting to pursue a musical career and to enjoy life away from the camera, but he has had a few on-screen cameos since then.

The actor has been married and divorced three times, and has one daughter from his first marriage. His third marriage was to a woman named Claudia Haro and was arguably the most controversial.

They wed in 1988 and divorced in 1999, but Haro made headlines years later when she was arrested for attempted murder – something he was briefly rumored to be involved in. 

The actress, who appeared in a few movies like Jimmy Hollywood, With Honors, and Casino, was accused of hiring a hitman to try to kill her ex-husband Garrett Warren in 2000.

A man showed up at his house and shot him four times in the chest, neck, hip, and eye, right after she had filed for divorce; he survived the attack.

She ultimately pleaded no contest to two counts of attempted murder and a principle firearm charge and was sentenced to 12 years in prison in April 2012. She was released in 2019. 

Looper.com reported that Pesci was ‘briefly considered as the supposed source of financing for the failed hit,’ but the allegations against him were later dropped. 

The acclaimed actor also made headlines in 2006, when he allegedly struck a man in Florida, who was attempting to take a picture with him. 

John Heard – Home Alone

Heard, who passed away in July 2017 at age 71, portrayed Kevin’s dad, Peter McCallister, in Home Alone, and afterwards, he did not slow down.

While his career flourished –  his acting credits include Awakenings (which also starred Robert De Niro and Robin Williams), Deceived (with Goldie Hawn), Gladiator in 1992, Samuel L. Jackson’s One Eight Sevem, The Sopranos, crime show CSI: Miami, Prison Break, and Fox series The Chicago Code – his personal life was filled with controversy.

In 1991, one year after his success in Home Alone, he was arrested and charged with third-degree assault for allegedly slapping his ex-girlfriend Melissa Leo.

He and Leo got together in the ’80s and welcomed a son, named James Matthew, together in 1987. But after splitting a few years later, they became engulfed in a nasty custody battle.

He was also accused of trespassing onto her property, stalking her and their son, and beating up her new partner, but was only found guilty of one charge of trespassing in the end.  

‘I fear for the safety of my son and my safety,’ Leo said in a complaint filed with police at the time, which was obtained by AP. ‘[Heard] is stalking my son and must be stopped before something else happens.’

Heard was married three times, and fathered three kids. His first marriage to actress Marot Kidder, which took place before he dated Leo, only last six days.

In 2016, news hit the web that his son Max – from his second wife, Sharon – had died; the cause of death was not released, but in the obituary, Sharon stated that Max did ‘not have a father participating in his life,’ seemingly confirming that they had been estranged before the passing.

He also married a woman named Lana Pritchard in 2010, but they divorced after seven months together. He died of cardiac arrest due to hypertensive heart disease in 2017. 

John Candy – Home Alone

Candy’s character in Home Alone, Gus Polinski (also known as the Polka King of the Midwest), famously helped Kate McCallister find her son, playing a big role in the movie’s happy ending.

But in real life, Candy did not have a happy ending. He died at the early age of 43 in 1994 from a heart attack, after spending years struggling with obesity, binge eating, heavy alcohol use, smoking, and cocaine addiction.

It’s been said that he weighed in excess of 300 pounds during some points of his life, and would eat to cope with his professional struggles and ‘anxiety.’

He once admitted that his drug problem began after he moved to Chicago to in 1972, when he joined the comedy group The Second City.

‘The next thing I knew, I was in Chicago, where I learned how to drink, stay up real late, and spell “d-r-u-g-s,”‘ he said.

AllTheInteresting.com added that it didn’t help that Candy’s ‘career was largely built on playing the big funny guy.’

‘Though he often tried to diet and exercise, Candy would turn back to bad habits,’ the outlet reported. ‘He quit drugs for a time, but he continued to smoke cigarettes and used food to quell his anxiety.

‘When that didn’t work, panic and anxiety set in. Inner turmoil followed him to the set of his final film in Durango, Mexico – and hastened his demise.’

Before his passing, he starred in Disney’s The Rescuers Down Under, horror comedy Nothing But Trouble, JFK in 1991, rom-com Only the Lonely (which he also co-wrote and co-directed with Chris Columbus), and Cool Runnings (with Cuba Gooding Jr.). 

Hugh Grant – Love Actually

Hugh Grant played David, the Prime Minister who is finding his feet as the new leader of the country before finding love with his secretary Natalie (Martine McCutcheon) in Love Actually.

Unlike his co-stars, Hugh’s biggest scandal came before he landed a role in the romcom. 

In 1995 Hugh was famously arrested near Sunset Boulevard after paying around £45 ($60) for Divine to perform oral sex on him in his car. 

The star was dating model Elizabeth Hurley at the time, and said the act was performed in his car after he didn’t have enough money to take Divine – real name Estella Marie Thompson – to a hotel. 

In a statement at the time Hugh said: ‘Last night I did something completely insane. I have hurt people I love and embarrassed people I work with. For both things I am more sorry than I can ever possibly say.’

Hugh was sentenced to a fine of $1,000 (£761) and ordered to attend an education programme about Aids.

Brown was sentenced to 180 days in prison for engaging in lewd conduct in a public place, and had also violated her probation for previous prostitution charges.  She went onto make around $1 million through the publicity surrounding the scandal. 

Hugh has been able to laugh off the scandal, however, and in 2019 he hit back at critics of his political views by tweeting his famous mugshot.

At the time, the star was being a vocal campaigner of tactical voting in the General Election, but faced backlash from Labour supporters for his newfound support of the party.

Hugh captioned his tweet: ‘To my dear trolls. Hope this is helpful. Now you have more time to spend with mummy.’ 

Colin Firth – Love Actually

In Love Actually, Colin Firth played Jamie, a heartbroken writer who ends up leaving Britain after discovering his girlfriend is having an affair with his brother. 

Having fled to France to write, he ends up falling in love with his Portuguese housekeeper Aurélia (Lúcia Moniz) and despite not being to speak each other’s languages, the pair fall in love. 

Colin’s real life ended up spookily mirroring his character’s as he was also left heartbroken after his wife Livia ended up having an affair. 

The couple split in 2019 after 22 years of marriage, and have two sons, Luca and Matteo.

A statement from their publicists read: ‘Colin and Livia Firth have separated. They maintain a close friendship and remain united in their love for their children. They kindly ask for privacy. There will be no further comment’.

Their split came a year after it was alleged Livia had a year-long affair with Italian journalist Marco Brancaccia.

She sparked a police investigation after claiming her childhood friend Mr Brancaccia harassed her with a ‘frightening’ barrage of messages.

The Oscar-winner confronted his wife over a ‘heartbreaking and malicious’ email from her ex-lover in March 2018.

The message contained revelations ‘designed to wound’ the King’s Speech star – who has maintained a dignified silence over the affair.

At the time, a friend of the actor said: ‘This guy Marco basically told Colin everything he had been doing with his wife for a year. The email was a detailed diatribe, humiliated Colin and was designed with no other motive than to wound.

‘He described intimate meetings that would devastate any husband – no matter what the state of their marriage. And he did so with the misguided and hopeless belief he could destabilise the efforts being made by Colin and Livia to sort things out.

‘Colin presented this to his wife and in what must have been a very difficult confrontation. But he is the man that he is and has maintained his dignity throughout.’

As well as the email to Colin, his wife claims she received phone calls, lived in terror and believed she was being followed.

Livia also said emails containing pictures of her were sent to her 57-year-old husband after the pair reunited.

But Mr Brancaccia, 55, told The Times that Livia had invented the claims to cover up their affair, which happened between 2015 and 2016.

A spokesman for the couple at the time said: ‘A few years ago Colin and Livia privately made the decision to separate. During that time Livia briefly became involved with former friend Mr Brancaccia. The Firths have since reunited.

‘Subsequently, Mr Brancaccia carried out a frightening campaign of harassment over several months, much of which is documented. For obvious reasons, the Firths have never had any desire to make this matter public.’ 

Colin has since found love again with TV writer, Maggie Cohn, after they fell for each other on the set of his 2022 drama, The Staircase.

Martine McCutcheon – Love Actually 

Martine McCutcheon played unlucky-in-love Natalie who ultimately found her Prince Charming in the form of David, the Prime Minister (Hugh Grant), in Love Actually.

Yet it wasn’t meant to be in real life for Martine, who in August revealed her husband Jack McManus had left her after 18 years together. 

The couple married in 2012 in Italy’s picturesque Lake Como, five years after they started dating, and went on welcome son Rafferty, nine.

Martine, 48, shared the shock announcement while on a ‘much needed’ holiday in Marbella with their son, and insisted that she and Rafferty will always ‘root for’ Jack, 40, going forward. 

Fans were left in disbelief by the news as it came just three weeks after she shared a gushing birthday post to Jack on August 4 and revealed he was grieving the death of his father.

The EastEnders icon penned: ‘After much thought and consideration, Jack has decided it’s best for us to separate after 18 years together and I accept his decision.’

She continued: ‘We are both so very blessed and grateful for our beautiful, 9 year old son Rafferty, who’s happiness and welfare, has always been, and will continue to be, our number 1 priority.

‘We both of course, still cherish and look forward to being parents together to our wonderful boy for the rest of our lives…

‘Whilst this decision has evolved over a period of time, we are still finding our new way forward as a family and kindly ask for some privacy at this time… Especially for our little boy.

‘Our love for Rafferty, is something that will never, waver, or change and we obviously want to protect him and help him feel as safe and secure as possible.

‘Many thanks in advance for your respect and support, at this difficult time…

‘And I continue to send Jack, all the love, luck and happiness for the next chapter of his. Rafferty and I (as always,) are rooting for you!

‘Thank you all, for the love and support, now and always…Martine.xx.’

Billy Bob Thornton – Love Actually 

Billy Bob Thornton took on the role of the bolshy US President who clashed with the Prime Minister (Hugh Grant) in Love Actually.

In real life, Billy knows all too much about going after what he wants, having been married six times. 

Yet his marriages have been short, but hardly sweet. He wed first wife, Melissa Lee Gatlin, in 1978. ‘Well, I got drunk, went bowling and got married’, he later explained.

They had a daughter, Amanda, but Billy ended it after two years. He remains estranged from Amanda.

Billy married again in 1986, to little-known actress Toni Lawrence. As with wife number three, aspiring thespian Cynthia Williams, whom he wed in 1990, the marriage lasted just two years.

In 1993, Russian former Playboy Playmate Pietra Cherniak became wife number four. They had two children, William and Harry. Pietra ended the marriage in 1997, accusing Billy of spousal abuse, which he denied.

He then began seeing Jurassic Park star Laura Dern, but that ended in 1999 when Angelina Jolie came into Billy’s life on the set of Pushing Tin, a film about air traffic controllers.

Laura only realised she was history when Angelina turned up at a party with ‘Billy Bob’ tattooed on her shoulder. ‘I left our home to work on a movie, and while I was away, my boyfriend got married, and I’ve never heard from him again,’ she said. 

Billy and Angelina wed in 2000 in Las Vegas, despite the fact he was 20 years older. But it was not just the age difference that made the union seem unbalanced.

The intense pair were said to be so devoted that Billy said he had a ‘legal piece of paper in her blood, saying that I could never leave her for all of eternity’.

Their marriage actually lasted just two years — the Billy standard. They separated in June 2002.

Billy then went on to date someone who wasn’t famous. He met Connie Angland in 2002 on the set of comedy Bad Santa where she was a puppeteer. They had a daughter, Bella, and Connie became wife number six in 2014.

Emma Thompson – Love Actually 

Emma Thompson’s Love Actually character Karen had viewers in tears with her iconic scene when she learns of her husband’s (Alan Rickman) affair. 

It was a case of life imitating art for Emma, who had been left heartbroken when it emerged her husband Kenneth Branagh had an affair with Helena Bonham Carter, admitting she felt ‘unlovable’ after finding out.

The actress married Kenneth in 1989 just two years after they met, but his affair with Helena ended their six-year marriage in 1995.

Helena is believed to have started an affair with Kenneth in 1994 while she played his love interest in his version of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. They went on to have a five-year relationship.

Speaking to the New Yorker in 2022, Emma admitted she felt ‘humiliated’ by the affair and felt that she was ‘unlovable’ after being left devastated by Kenneth’s unfaithfulness.

She told the publication: ‘I was utterly, utterly blind to the fact that he had relationships with other women on set.

‘What I learned was how easy it is to be blinded by your own desire to deceive yourself.’

‘I was half alive. Any sense of being a lovable or worthy person had gone completely,’ she added.

Two years before Helena met Kenneth and their affair began, she had worked with Emma on 1992 romance drama film Howard’s End.

Since the affair, the pair have also worked together on the Harry Potter series, with Emma playing Professor Trelawney and Helena starring as Bellatrix Lestrange.

Emma has previously admitted that she had long ‘forgiven’ Helena and channelled her feelings of betrayal into playing a wronged wife in hit film Love Actually.

Revealing how she recovered from the devastation, Emma said it was her now husband Greg Wise who ‘picked up the pieces and put them back together’.

Emma met Greg while filming Sense and Sensibility in 1995, which won an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay. 

Randy Quaid – National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation

Early in his career, Randy Quaid was known for dramatic roles in such films as The Last Detail (1973), which garnered him an Oscar nomination, and as a prisoner in the highly acclaimed drama Midnight Express (1978), alongside co-stars Brad Davis and John Hurt.

But in the 1980s he endeared fans with quirkier comedic roles like Cousin Eddie in the National Lampoon franchise that began with Vacation, starring Chevy Chase in 1983.

He would reprise the over-the-top character in National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989), Vegas Vacation (1997) and Christmas Vacation 2: Cousin Eddie’s Island Adventure (2003). 

His long Hollywood resume also includes A Streetcar Named Desire (1984), LBJ: The Early Years (1987), Caddyshack II (1988), Parents (1989), Independence Day (1996) and Brokeback Mountain (2005). 

Over the last decade, the actor has been known more for his legal issues, conspiracy theories and attempt to seek asylum in Canada, stating that he and his wife feared for their lives in the US.

The couple, who have been married for 30 years, were first arrested in 2009 for leaving a Santa Barbara, California hotel without paying. 

They were arrested again the following year for living in and damaging a guest house on the property of a home they once owned. 

There were also multiple missed court appearances and arrest warrants along the way in both the US and Canada.

Eventually Evi Quaid was granted Canadian citizenship in 2011, but Randy’s request was denied. 

They were eventually detained in 2015, while trying to drive across the Canadian border into Vermont, one week before his deportation date.  

In 2021, Randy said he was ‘seriously considering’ running for California governor.

‘I’m seriously considering running for governor. The prosecutorial corruption in California (esp Santa Barbara & the Bell scandal) is rampant; and I promise that if elected I will clean up the District Attorney Offices throughout the state,’ he said on X.

Randy, the older brother of Dennis Quaid who is also known for his role in National Lampoon films, followed up with a hashtag, ‘#RandyQuaid4CAGOV’. 

For confidential support in the UK, call the Samaritans on 116123 or visit www.samaritans.org for details; In the US call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (1-800-273-8255).