Cara Delevingne credited her sobriety with helping her mentally cope with the aftermath of her Studio City, California mansion burning down almost four months ago.
The 31-year-old actress/model, in an interview published on Sunday, said being sober and present amid the traumatic life event ultimately helped her rebound and recover emotionally.
‘It sucks but everyone was safe and, like anything, if I’d not been sober I would still be reeling over that,’ Delevingne told The Times. ‘It would still affect me really deeply.’
The London native said that while she remains upset by the blaze, she’s focused on moving forward rather than wallowing in sadness about what happened.
‘Of course it affected me, it’s super sad,’ Delevingne said. ‘It never won’t be. But I don’t use it as a tool to keep myself sad.’
Cara Delevingne, 31, credited her sobriety with helping her mentally cope with the aftermath of her Studio City, California mansion burning down in March. Pictured June 25 in London
An aerial view of Delevingne’s Studio City home on March 15 showed how it had been decimated by the blaze
Delevingne – who said she decided to make life changes in 2022 – said she can feel the emotional differences in the years since.
‘I used to think drugs and alcohol helped me cope … but they didn’t, they kept me sad and super depressed,’ she said. ‘I feel like I’ve got my power back and I’m not being controlled by other things.’
No one was seriously injured in the blaze, as Delevingne had been overseas in London at the time it struck, as she’d been in the cast of Cabaret on the West End, and her pets were confirmed to be OK.
Delevingne said that despite the setback, she plans on continuing to reside in the U.S. and doesn’t plan on moving back to England.
Officials with the Los Angeles Fire Department said that the cause of the fire had been ‘undetermined’ following a probe, according to TMZ, adding that foul play had not been suspected.
No one witnessed anything related to the blaze, authorities said, and there was not forensic evidence to provide any clues into the investigation.
Delevingne’s parents Pandora and Charles were asked the day of the incident what had caused the fire, with her father Charles pointing to ‘electrical’ issues, adding that ‘something fell on a powerline’ while the area was undergoing ‘very windy’ weather conditions.
Pandora at the time said she was concerned for her daughter following the house fire.
Firefighters battled the blaze for more than two hours before it had been extinguished
Officials with the Los Angeles Fire Department said that the cause of the fire had been ‘undetermined’ following a probe
‘I think she’s probably devastated,’ Pandora said. ‘She had everything in her house, her whole life. She built it, she made it. She has everything in it.’
Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Nicholas Prange said March 15 that a firefighter had been hospitalized in fair condition with an unspecified injury, and a person who was in the home had minor smoke inhalation, according to the AP.
Prange said that when the fire department arrived at the house, the blaze was raging in the back end of the home, having decimated a room and the attic area.
After clearing the residence, firefighters took a defensive position in battling the blaze, with the roof collapsing in at one point.
Prange said that firefighters battled the blaze for more than two hours before it had been extinguished.
Delevingne – who said she decided to make life changes in 2022 – said she can feel the emotional differences in the years since. Pictured in June in London
Delevingne took to Instagram Stories to express her gratitude toward first responders in the wake of the fire.
‘Thank you from the bottom of my heart to all the firefighters and people that have showed up to help,’ she said.
Since rising to fame as a model, Delevingne has delved into acting with prominent roles in films such as 2016’s Suicide Squad and 2017’s Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets.
She’s been seen in TV shows including Hulu’s Only Murders in the Building in 2022 and the FX series American Horror Story in 2023.