Advertisement

Robin Williams in rehab program to ‘fine-tune’ his sobriety

Robin Williams on the set of his most recent TV series, "The Crazy Ones," last November.
(Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)
Share via

Just ask Robin Williams: A person doesn’t have to fall off the wagon to indulge in a little rehab.

The Oscar winner is spending a few weeks at the Hazelden facility in Minnesota, participating in a program designed to reinforce sobriety, the Los Angeles Times has confirmed. No fall off the wagon prompted the planned stay.

“After working back-to-back projects, Robin is simply taking the opportunity to fine-tune and focus on his continued commitment, of which he remains extremely proud,” his rep said Tuesday.

Advertisement

It ain’t no lockdown, that’s for sure: Williams, 62, appeared to be tweeting and Facebooking his support for the U.S. national men’s team Tuesday ahead of their World Cup match against Belgium.

“Two Teddys. One Goal. #IBelieveThatWeWillWin chaaaarrrrrrrge #USA!!,” said a tweet on his verified account, captioning a shot that included him as Teddy Roosevelt, his recurring character in the “Night at the Museum” film franchise.

Also, TMZ, which first reported the news, appears to have been tipped off by a Facebook picture of the funny guy looking trim and posing with an employee at a Dairy Queen that’s within walking distance of Hazelden.

Advertisement

Williams, who’s been open about his problems with cocaine and alcohol over the years, previously spent time on a Hazelden campus in Oregon back in 2006. He later explained that drinking had gradually become a problem again after 20 years of sobriety.

“You’re standing at a precipice and you look down, there’s a voice and it’s a little quiet voice that goes, ‘Jump,’” the “Mrs. Doubtfire” star told ABC News in October of that year. “The same voice that goes, ‘Just one.’ … And the idea of just one for someone who has no tolerance for it, that’s not the possibility.”

This time around, it looks as if meditation and spiritual work will be competing with any possible World Cup viewing.

Advertisement

Hazelden bills its Lodge “experience” as a place where people who are living sober can come to touch their 12-step bases.

Follow Christie D’Zurilla on Twitter @theCDZ and Google+. Follow the Ministry of Gossip on Twitter @LATcelebs.

Advertisement