Whoopi Goldberg Was ‘Under the Influence’ Before Her Oscar Speech in 1991: “I Smoked a Joint”

Whoopi Goldberg calmed her nerves with the help of marijuana before taking the stage for the Oscar Award in 1991, but no one knew. However, The View panelist 'herself' revealed in 2011 that she was "under the influence" of drugs while looking absolutely normal. The comedian won the Best Supporting Actress for her role in Ghost during the 63rd annual Oscars. 

The 67-year-old said in a confessional, "Smoking cigarettes and pot every now and then are my habits. And I thought, 'I've got to relax.' So I smoked a joint, my homegrown, to get calm before the glamorous Hollywood gathering," as reported by TMZ. She recalled being surprised when the jury pronounced her a winner. 

In a video obtained by the outlet, Goldberg said she struggled to fix her focus to get on stage and accept the prestigious honor. "When he (presenter actor Denzel Washington) said my name and I popped up, I thought, 'Oh f*ck'…okay, up the stairs … around to the podium … there are millions of people, get the statue, pick up the statue."

Her revelation was part of Goldberg's voice-over recording session for the 1992 film The Pagemaster. The Oscar winner showed no signs of being under the influence and appeared excited and overwhelmed while receiving the award. The author admitted it isn't easy accepting that you smoked weed, but her mother called her out for being stoned during the Oscars. 

"I know you're not supposed to admit that you smoke pot, but I don't drink alcohol," revealed Goldberg. However, she clarified, "Just because I do it doesn't mean you should." The 67-year-old described herself as a fully-functioning addict. While discussing Charlie Sheen's woes on her show, The View, Goldberg said, "He is an alcoholic, he is a drug user. He knows he has a lot of people he's responsible for."

Goldberg expounded, "Having been a drug addict, I feel I can say this… I was a functioning drug addict; I showed up for work because I knew a lot of people would be out of work and I wouldn't get a check that I needed to buy my drugs," as reported by Entertainment Weekly. She continued, "I ended up sitting on a bed for three or four days, scared there was something under the bed." 

Adding, "I wet the bed, I pooped the bed… I was so scared. I hit bottom. I did that a long time ago." Her journey to sobriety wasn't smooth sailing. Her friends encouraged her to live a clean life. She recounted, "They said, 'This is not for you. This is not the life for you, and we are not going to help you anymore. You need to stop,'" as reported by The Things.

She claimed it took ten days for her to reach sobriety, including 3-4 days in bed defecating and urinating. The comedian admitted, "I was so scared." After she married Alvin Martin, Goldberg welcomed a daughter, Alexandrea Martin. They divorced after six years, and she explained that her sobriety convinced her to become an actor.