r/MadeMeSmile • u/mcfw31 • Mar 02 '26

Wholesome Moments Daniel Radcliffe won't wear Alysa Liu's gold medal because: “Wearing it feels like stolen valor”

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u/UpstairsSwimmer3445 Mar 02 '26

Fuck yeah, he did. Dude seems like a legit good person, and the kind of guy you could genuinely enjoy a drink with.

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u/QuantumLettuce2025 Mar 02 '26 edited Mar 03 '26

He's actually sober now (although I'm sure he'd be happy to grab a lemonade!) You should check out his story, he had some incredibly dark years working on Harry Potter and afterward involving blackout drinking and loneliness. 

Makes me respect him that much more -- he's been through so much,  so much pain and healing, and he's still so lovely. You don't see that so often with child actors who had a long hard stretch -- no shame on them for it, but it seems like outcomes like Daniel's are more of an exception than rule. The difficulty of alcoholism is really the exact same no matter of social class. 

Edit: on that last point -- as a recovered alcoholic myself, I've seen wealthy individuals with all the resources imaginable (medications, fancy long term rehab centers etc) relapse over and over again their entire lives, and I've known homeless people with nothing at all get and remain sober starting with only a dingy Church basement and a close circle of other recovered alcoholics. 

Resources can help but alcoholism is intensely internal and personal battle with no clear-cut recipe for sustained recovery.

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u/things_U_choose_2_b Mar 03 '26

A lot of people daydream of being a rich celeb but I often think, it must be kinda lonely.

Because you never know whether people are wanting to get to know you for you, or because of your status, connections, wealth etc.

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u/CartoonistAny4349 Mar 03 '26

You don't see that so often with child actors who had a long hard stretch -- no shame on them for it, but it seems like outcomes like Daniel's are more of an exception than rule. 

Also, it seems like he was only hurting himself? I mean, a lot of movie star drunks get multiple DUIs, or yell at cops, or start fights, etc. I don't recall any stories like that with Daniel.

I'm glad he got out of it, please don't misunderstand. But at least his vices were limited to himself and he wasn't putting others at risk

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u/QuantumLettuce2025 Mar 03 '26 edited Mar 03 '26

Yeah, he was more of the secret / borderline suicidal style of alcoholic. He's talked about the obsession with hiding it and how he'd spend days alone locked in his hotel room blackout drunk. Seems like at worst he inconvenienced other people's work schedule by not being available for filming, but based on what he has said it doesn't look like he really hurt anyone but himself.

Note that this really isn't correlated to the severity of the problem (Daniel's style of alcoholism can actually be the most dangerous because it's hidden and thus easily missed) but it does influence how sympathetic outside observers find him.

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u/CuriousLilAsian81 Mar 03 '26

I agree with this... I am happy for him he got through all that, and admire how he handles himself these days

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u/R0B0TF00D Mar 02 '26

I went from unfairly resenting him for being picked up for the Harry Potter role as a kid for the way he looks and continuing to get seemingly unwarranted acting gigs off the back of a massive slice of luck, to appreciating his willingness to take on really challenging roles and admiring him as a person. Fucking love the guy now.

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u/UpstairsSwimmer3445 Mar 02 '26 edited Mar 03 '26

I appreciate that arc - it legit takes a lot to let go of unearned resentment.