John Mulaney is choosing honesty when it comes to sharing his struggle with addiction and his attempts to stay sober.

During his 2012 comedy special, New in Town, Mulaney explained why he decided to stop drinking years prior. “I used to drink too much, and then I would black out and I would ‘ruin’ parties, or so I’m told,” he joked. “When you do that enough, when you black out drinking and you do crazy things, you kind of become, like, Michael Jackson. Like, any story anyone says about you might be true, and even you don’t know by the end.”

Mulaney revealed in 2014 that he had been sober since September 2005. However, in December 2020, he voluntarily checked into rehab for alcoholism and cocaine addiction.

A source told Us Weekly at the time that it “was a relief to his wife and family that he checked in” and got professional help, adding, “John has always been engaged in his sobriety. The relapse got ugly, but it was his choice to go to rehab, which saved his life.”

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The comedian left rehab in February 2021. Us confirmed his split from wife Anna Marie Tendler that May — and confirmed his relationship with Olivia Munn soon after. He and Munn welcomed son Malcolm in November 2021. Three years later, the couple tied the knot and expanded their family with daughter Méi, whom they welcomed via surrogate in September 2024.

Scroll down for more of Mulaney’s honest quotes about his addiction journey and the road to recovery: