Bradley Cooper believes his daughter saved his life.
While opening up about family dynamics and sobriety with Dax Shepherd, the Maestro star shared how his 6-year-old daughter Lea—whom he shares with ex-girlfriend Irina Shayk—affected his life.
"Honestly, I'm not sure I'd be alive if I wasn't a dad—I don't know." Bradley said on a Feb. 26 episode of Armchair Expert with Dax Shepherd. "I just needed someone to say, ‘We're gonna drop this massive anchor,' and I'm like, ‘Why? We're speeding. We just got an upgrade on the boat and I know where the wind is coming in.' And they're like, ‘No, there's a tsunami coming and you need an anchor and we're gonna drop it. This is going to dictate everything you do from now on."
He added, "Your DNA is going to tell you there's something more important than you.'"
The Silver Linings Playbook star also went on to share insight into his role as a father.
"I want her to have as much foundation as she can—I think about how my relationship with my daughter impacts her growth and the journey she's gonna be on," he added. "The least amount of damage I can do to my daughter—please let me work on myself."
Still, the 49-year-old continues to compose his own perfect melody for parenthood—admitting it took several months for him to develop a strong attachment to her.
"The first eight months, I was like, ‘I don't even know if I really love the kid, it's dope. It's cool,'" he joked. "And then all of a sudden it's like no question."
While Bradley's daughter—who made her acting debut in his latest film—was born in 2017, the Hangover alum has been sober for nearly 20 years, a decision he partly credits to a conversation he had with friend Will Arnett after a party in the summer of 2004.
"That was the first time I ever realized I had a problem with drugs and alcohol," he said on the Smartless podcast in 2022. "I'll never forget it."
Bradley isn't the only star who has detailed the ins and outs of his sobriety journey. Keep reading for more celebs who have opened up on the topic.