Celebrities and Sex Addiction

It's more than just sex
Although the American Psychiatric Association has yet to recognize sexual addiction as an official diagnosis (they may call it hypersexual disorder), chances are you’ve heard the term. Characterized by compulsive sexual thoughts and acts, people with a sex addiction supposedly have an inability to control sexual behavior, even when it’s risky or harmful.

“It’s not about sex, it’s about obsession,” says Robert Weiss, the founding director of the Sexual Recovery Institute, in Los Angeles.

These seven celebs have either battled sex addiction or have been rumored to have a problem.

David Duchovny

Duchovny has been married to Tea Leoni since 1997 and has two children, but that didn’t stop rumors from flying about his promiscuous ways. He denied rumors by telling Playgirl magazine in 1997, “I’m not a sex addict.”

However, in August 2008, Duchovny admitted to having a sex addiction and checked into rehab for treatment.

Eric Benet

Benet, an R&B singer, rose to fame after marrying Halle Berry. When the couple separated in 2003, rumors swirled that Benet had been treated for sex addiction.

Although in 2008 he admitted to going through addiction treatment, he claimed he was never addicted to sex.

Michael Douglas

Douglas played sexually driven characters in two movies, Basic Instinct and Fatal Attraction, and in a possible case of life imitating art, Douglas was reported to have entered sex rehab in 1993.

However, in December 1994, Douglas told Star-News that he entered the Sierra Tucson clinic for excessive drinking. There have been reports that his prenup with Catherine Zeta-Jones contains a $5 million penalty for any infidelity.

Tiger Woods

Woods is the most recent—and famous—case of possible celebrity sex addiction. 

Woods wrecked his Escalade in late November 2009, allegedly due to a domestic dispute over an affair. As a parade of Woods’ supposed mistresses talked to the media, he posted an apology on his website: “I am deeply aware of the disappointment and hurt that my infidelity has caused to so many people, most of all my wife and children.” 

He reportedly checked into a clinic for sex addiction treatment.

Russell Brand

Funnyman Brand is best known for his role in 2008’s Forgetting Sarah Marshall, but he’s also well-known for his womanizing. He won the Sun’s “Shagger of the Year” award three years in a row and is rumored to have slept with 80 women in one month. 

In his memoir, My Booky Wook, Brand admitted to suffering from an addiction to heroin and sex. He entered a sexual addiction treatment center in Philadelphia, completed treatment, and is now engaged to singer Katy Perry.

Kanye West

This talented and often arrogant rapper/singer/producer is never without a lady on his arm. In 2006, he told Rolling Stone that he enjoys pornography, but later insisted the reporter exaggerated his statements. 

However, in 2009, West shocked readers when he told Details magazine he had a sex addiction. “People ask me a lot about my drive,” he says. “I think it comes from, like, having a sexual addiction at a really young age.” 

However, West has not publicly said his behavior is problematic or received treatment for sex addiction.

Bill Murray

Actor/comedian Bill Murray normally stays out of the spotlight, except when it comes to his love life. He was married to Margaret Kelly for 15 years before the couple divorced over his affair with Jennifer Butler. 

Butler and Murray were married for more than 10 years, but when they divorced, Butler accused him of “adultery, addiction to marijuana and alcohol...sexual addictions and frequent abandonment.” 

Murray has not commented on the accusations.