John Goodman Reveals Brutal Aftermath of Bariatric Surgery

John Goodman is finally speaking openly about the heavy toll his weight took on him. In a recent sit-down with The New Yorker, the 74-year-old performer detailed his battles with obesity and alcoholism. He explained that he achieved sobriety in his 50s but had long been fighting to control his weight before quitting. "I'd lose sixty pounds in a summer, gain it all back," he told the magazine. "Seventy pounds, eighty pounds. And that got tiring."

"I took steps so I wouldn't have to do that anymore," Goodman said. At one point, he weighed almost four hundred pounds. Even after stopping alcohol, he admitted he kept eating in a way that mirrored his drinking habits. "I was eating alcoholically after I stopped drinking," he confessed. To fix the damage, he underwent stomach surgery. The procedure worked to an extent, but the aftermath was brutal. He became anemic and lost a layer of fat under his skin.

The actor's history with addiction runs deep. His struggles started in 1978 when his girlfriend at the time put him on waivers, giving him free rein for his nights after five years of restriction. "I started gaining weight at an alarming rate," he recalled. He spent hours moving between bars until drinking became a habit. One spot stood out: Café Central. He turned it into home and got very used to drinking there while chasing friends and laughter.

"There's a saying in the rooms: I got sick and tired of being sick and tired," he said regarding his decision to quit. Instant gratification drove him deeper into trouble, leading to massive hangovers and shaking hands that required more alcohol to stop them. "I was in a position, when I quit, where I had to be hospitalized one way or the other." He grew weary of the cycle and realized how selfish it made him. Drinking delayed his maturity while he ignored real life. Seeing a world without substances brought joy.

Goodman has discussed this journey before. In 2023, an interview with Rolling Stone revealed he added boxing to his daily walks. His routine involved just one or one-and-a-half hours hitting the mitts and bags while learning footwork. "I dug it," he told the outlet. He never felt safe enough to spar because getting hit in the face might make him lose control.

Fans know him best as Dan Conner, the head of the Conner family on Roseanne. That role ran for nine seasons during the show's original run. Goodman returned to play the same character in the 2018 reboot and again in the spin-off series The Conners.