Actor Erik "Happy" Anderson on Sobriety, Mindhunter & The Business of Acting | Harder to Breathe Podcast
Release Date: 08/12/2025
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info_outlineActor Erik "Happy" Anderson — known for his unforgettable role as Jerry Brudos in Mindhunter and appearances in The Knick — sits down for a raw, unfiltered conversation about addiction recovery, 21 years of sobriety, and surviving the relentless pressure of Hollywood.
By college, he was a “fall down drunk.” By 26, he was homeless. In this candid interview on the Harder to Breathe Podcast, Happy shares his journey from blackout performances on stage to becoming a working actor in one of the toughest industries in the world. He opens up about the moment he realized he had a drinking problem at 13, the terrifying blackouts, hitting rock bottom, and the path that led him to lasting recovery.
📌 Timestamps
00:00 Intro
23:40 Why So Many Young Actors Get Sober
28:10 Being Blackout Drunk On Stage... and Getting Praise For It
31:30 Hitting Rock Bottom & Getting Sober
42:30 Mindhunter & Unearthing Repressed Trauma
47:15 The Rage I Had Before Sobriety
52:00 Acting is Therapeutic, But It's Not Therapy
01:01:00 The Anxiety of Being a Working Actor
01:10:00 Dealing with Resentment and Imposter Syndrome
01:24:30 My Kidney Cancer Diagnosis
🎧 Listen to the full episode now:
Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Or wherever you get your podcasts
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