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Jonah Hill stepping out of spotlight after 20-year health battle: 'Anxiety'
Hollywood star Jonah Hill is stepping out of the spotlight after revealing his surprising health battle.
In a statement to Deadline about his documentary Stutz, the star said he won’t be making any public appearances to promote films due to his mental health.
“I have come to the understanding that I have spent nearly 20 years experiencing anxiety attacks, which are exacerbated by media appearances and public-facing events,” his statement read.
The film tackles the tough subject of mental health by following Jonah and his therapist, Phil Stutz. The Superbad actor went on to say that while he’s "grateful" that his film will be shared, fans won’t see him at any promotional events.
“You won’t see me out there promoting this film, or any of my upcoming films, while I take this important step to protect myself," he said.
“If I made myself sicker by going out there and promoting it, I wouldn’t be acting true to myself or the film."
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The 21 Jump Street actor acknowledged his "privilege", saying that it’s not common for people to be able to take time off while "working on anxiety".
“With this letter and with ‘Stutz’, I’m hoping to make it more normal for people to talk and act on this stuff. So they can take steps towards feeling better and so that the people in their lives might understand their issues more clearly,” he wrote.
Stutz is Jonah’s second film as a director, after releasing skateboarding film Mid90s in 2018. After his battle with anxiety attacks, the Wolf of Wall Street star has now deleted his Instagram account.
In 2021, Jonah opened up to GQ about the social media platform and admitted he had to have "limited interaction" with it.
“Instagram — as I smoke a cigarette — is the cigarettes of this time. It is the biggest killer. It is death,” he said.
He also gave the publication an insight into his mental health journey, adding: “I realised over years of doing this sh*t seriously is, yes, you learn these things that can cut the emotional weight off immediately. But it takes daily diligence to keep doing it.”
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