Kevin Smith completes rehab stint for trauma over child sexual abuse and fat-shaming… and reveals he hasn’t smoked marijuana in three months

Two-time Cannes Award winner Kevin Smith revealed he ‘suffered a mental health crisis’ in January, which led to a ‘complete break from reality’ followed by a rehab stint at Sierra Tucson in Arizona.

‘It was scary,’ the 52-year-old filmmaker recalled to People on Wednesday.

‘At that moment, I wouldn’t have been averse to not being around any longer. I called a friend and said, “I’m in a weird, dark place. I need to go somewhere and get help.”‘

Kevin told his Sierra Tucson therapist about the time he was six years old and an older boy forced him to perform sexual acts on a young neighborhood girl, which he described as ‘playing doctor in an alleyway.’

The therapist clarified to Smith: ‘When a third party is instructing you to do something against your core values like that, that’s sexual abuse.’

Another psychological wound the New Jersey-born director confronted in rehab was the time a teacher made fun of his gut at age nine, which made him feel ‘disgusting, like I didn’t matter.’

‘That’s when “the other guy” started to appear. I decided to be entertaining and make people love me before they noticed I was fat,’ Kevin explained.

‘In the beginning, it was tough to share when [a war veteran] is talking about watching their friend get killed and I’m like, “Well, my fourth-grade teacher told me I was fat.” But I learned that there’s no differentiation [between levels of trauma] to the human nervous system. Internally, trauma is trauma.’

The 160-acre treatment center – said to cost in the $40K range – offers acupuncture, chiropractic, massage therapy, shiatsu, yoga, equine-assisted therapy, and Smith found the mindful exercises to be helpful.

‘This was eye opening to me,’ the Clerks III director-star said of concentrating on his breathing to stay present.

‘Because I’d always spent the majority of my time depressed about the past or anxious over the future.’

However, Sierra Tucson is clearly not for everyone as it has a dismal two-star rating on Yelp (out of 115 reviews).

On January 23, Kevin did the unthinkable to his fans – he actually quit marijuana after decades of being as synonymous with the herb as celebs like Snoop Dogg, Seth Rogen, and Cheech & Chong.

The 52-year-old filmmaker recalled to People on Wednesday: ‘At that moment, I wouldn’t have been averse to not being around any longer. I called a friend and said, “I’m in a weird, dark place. I need to go somewhere and get help”‘

Sexual abuse: Kevin (pictured age five) told his Sierra Tucson therapist about the time he was six years old and an older boy forced him to perform sexual acts on a young neighborhood girl, which he described as ‘playing doctor in an alleyway’

Insecurity: Another psychological wound the New Jersey-born director (M, pictured age eight) confronted in rehab was the time a teacher made fun of his gut at age nine, which made him feel ‘disgusting, like I didn’t matter’

Kevin explained: ‘In the beginning, it was tough to share when [a war veteran] is talking about watching their friend get killed and I’m like, “Well, my fourth-grade teacher told me I was fat.” But I learned that there’s no differentiation [between levels of trauma] to the human nervous system. Internally, trauma is trauma’

‘This was eye opening to me’: The 160-acre treatment center – said to cost in the $40K range – offers acupuncture, chiropractic, massage therapy, shiatsu, yoga, equine-assisted therapy, and Smith found the mindful exercises to be helpful (pictured in 2018)

Yikes! However, Sierra Tucson is clearly not for everyone as it has a dismal two-star rating on Yelp (out of 115 reviews)

Smith was famously instrumental in launching the career of rapper Afroman by starring in his 2000 music video for Because I Got High, which was featured on the Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back soundtrack.

‘I know that maybe disappointing to a bunch of folks. Sorry,’ apologized the Highlife director, who sold his own weed strain via Caviar Gold in 2019.

‘”Silent Bob should be smoking weed!” He didn’t when we made those movies. He did when he was making the later movies and stuff, which could explain Yoga Hosers. But I’ve stopped. It’s been [three] months since I smoked weed, because I don’t want to be numb anymore.’

Smith’s post about the People article received supportive comments from Who Are you People actress Alyssa Milano, five-time Emmy nominee Lena Heady, four-time Grammy nominee Chris Daughtry, and Boston Strangler actor David Dastmalchian.

The Independent Spirit Award-winning screenwriter – who weighed his lowest (180lbs) in February – famously shrank his 5ft9in frame in 2018 by hiking and going vegan, and he became an official Weight Watchers ambassador after suffering a severe heart attack.

‘I know that maybe disappointing to a bunch of folks. Sorry!’ On January 23, the Clerks III director-star did the unthinkable to his fans – he actually quit marijuana after decades of being as synonymous with the herb as celebs like Snoop Dogg, Seth Rogen, and Cheech & Chong

Massive joint: Kevin was famously instrumental in launching the career of rapper Afroman (M) by starring in his 2000 music video for Because I Got High, which was featured on the Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back soundtrack

Smith – who sold his own weed strain via Caviar Gold in 2019 (pictured) – said: ‘Fans say, “Silent Bob should be smoking weed!” He didn’t when we made those movies. He did when he was making the later movies and stuff, which could explain Yoga Hosers. But I’ve stopped. It’s been [three] months since I smoked weed, because I don’t want to be numb anymore’

Smith used the drug as a Band-Aid of sorts to ‘numb’ his ‘growing wound’ so ‘by the time I walked into Sierra Tucson, I was a mummy just covered in bandages and not really present in the real world because constantly, I was numbing myself’

‘Thank you for sharing your story’: The Highlife director’s post about the People article received supportive comments from Alyssa Milano, Lena Heady, Chris Daughtry, and David Dastmalchian

Family support: Kevin has been supported in his continuing health transformation by his actress daughter Harley Quinn Smith (M, pictured in 2019) from his 24-year marriage to Jennifer Schwalbach (R), whom he met when she interviewed him for USA Today in 1997

This, eight years after Kevin was notoriously booted off a Southwest Airlines for being ‘too fat too fly’ at 330lbs.

Smith has been supported in his continuing health transformation by his actress daughter Harley Quinn Smith from his 24-year marriage to Jennifer Schwalbach, whom he met when she interviewed him for USA Today in 1997.

The New School drop-out’s next project in development is Twilight of the Mallrats – a long-gestating sequel to his 1995 comedy Mallrats – which will star Jason Lee, Jeremy London, Ethan Suplee, Jason Mewes, and Claire Forlani.

Kevin originally launched his career after shooting Clerks for $27,575 in the convenience/video stores where he worked, and the raunchy b&w comedy amassed $3.2M at the box office.