Andrew McCarthy admits drinking 'derailed my career entirely'

Andrew McCarthy has opened up about his struggles with the bottle.

In an appearance on Ted Danson's Where Everybody Knows Your Name podcast, the Pretty in Pink star reflected on the misconception that his success fuelled his addiction.

"People always go, 'Oh, well, you were too young, successful. That was too much for you, so you drank,'" McCarthy told Danson. "I'm like, 'No, I would have drunk anyway. I was just able to afford better vodka.'"

When Danson noted McCarthy was "certainly functional" in the early years, McCarthy agreed, "To a point."

"Those kind of movies, that was early on. I was just starting to drink in those movies, but I certainly think it derailed my career entirely. Because not only the drinking, but then the years it took to recover from the drinking.

During the 1980s, the St Elmo's Fire star became one of the defining faces of the Brat Pack, the influential group of young stars, including Molly Ringwald, Demi Moore and Rob Lowe, among others, who helped influence a generation of teen films.

McCarthy eventually sought treatment for alcoholism in the 1990s.

"I was so clouded for years after and by then, that moment had passed," he reflected of his Hollywood career.

"In 1992, I was in an alcohol rehab in Minnesota, and I was all played out. I was 29 years old, and I was just done."

The Orange is the New Black director hasn't had a drink since.