He was one of the most iconic child stars of the 1990s, but Shaun Weiss – known for such movies as Mighty Ducks and Heavyweight – found himself in the headlines for all the wrong reasons over the past few years.
In 2020, Weiss was arrested in California for burglary after a spiraling battle with drug addiction. His subsequent mugshot made its way to social media, where it went viral for evidencing the transformation Weiss had gone from cute kid to emaciated criminal.
According to reports, Weiss, then 41, had been discovered in a car parked within a resident’s garage. He had reportedly gained entry by shattering the passenger window, and was taken into custody by police.
Now though, having sought treatment at a rehab center called Quest 2 Recovery, Weiss finds his name back in the media, and this time he’s proudly showcasing the way in which he’s turned his life around.
The former child star told NewsNation that he has been sober for just over three years.
“I’ll just let you know, when they take your mug shot, they’re not using any Instagram filters down at the station,” he told NewsNation of his previous arrest.
January next year will mark four years of sobriety for the actor, who is also now working at Quest 2 Recovery as a coach.
“That’s really the thing I’m proudest of,” Weiss explained. “I’ve had a lot of accomplishments, but this recovery thing is really my proudest accomplishment.”
He added: “Being able to look at the trauma, I went through the lens of trying to be creative, and to do comedy has just been a game changer. And people find my story inspiring so I just kind of tell my story, and I try to do that — in a funny way, though. It’s fulfilling for me.”
The 45-year-old also spoke candidly on the subject of others who may be experiencing difficulties relating to a loved one battling drug addiction.
“As drug addicts, we tend to burn our bridges and burn people that are close to us in our life,” Weiss said. “But really, as a result of not really having family and things like that to pull me back — that’s how I became untethered and ended up on the street.
“It’s a very difficult thing, this drug addiction, and when we feel alone, it makes it even that much worse.”
I don’t know about you, but it warms my heart to see people turning their lives around in the way Shaun has. I loved him in Mighty Ducks, and his positive transformation to bring him back from the brink is truly inspiring stuff.