Jason Ritter Reflects on How Alcoholism Battle Impacted Early Relationship With Melanie Lynskey

Jason Ritter is sharing how his struggle with alcoholism affected his relationship early on with Melanie Lynskey.

During the married couple’s appearance on The Drew Barrymore Show on Wednesday, Barrymore asked Ritter when he knew Lynskey was the one. However, Ritter explained why it wasn’t necessarily “as cute of a story” as many may think.

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“I knew how incredible Melanie was early on … It was messy and interesting and weird. Mixed in the mix was, I was dealing with some alcoholism issues,” Ritter explained.

“At a point, I knew how amazing she was and I thought she would be incredible for someone who deserved her, basically,” he continued. “And I didn’t feel like I was that person. I felt a little bit too crazy.”

After he stopped drinking, Ritter told Barrymore, it wasn’t until some time had passed that he felt he could be the right person for her.

“It was only after like maybe a year into not drinking where I started to go, ‘Oh, maybe I can promise some things to someone else. Maybe I can be this person.’ It’s been like a slow burn. I knew that she was incredible. It was working on myself enough to feel like maybe I could be the one for her, too,” Ritter said, growing emotional.

“He worked so hard,” Lynskey said tearfully. “He did so much work on himself, I’m so proud of him.”

Touched by their story, Barrymore shared that alcohol was also her “poison” and she hasn’t had a drink in almost four years: “The narrative that one creates is that, ‘I can’t be with someone.’ And I haven’t been in a relationship since I stopped drinking, and I’m really looking forward to one day not having that bad girl narrative, the instability, the ‘I’m not someone who’s right to be with anyone, for their sake.'”

After their appearance on the show, Ritter tweeted, “Thank you @DrewBarrymoreTV for having us!! And for the space to talk about things like this! And thank you @melanielynskey for having me in the first place.”

Ritter and Lynskey first met in 2013 and after dating, the couple went on to welcome a daughter in 2018, according to People. They married in 2020.

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