Anthony Hopkins’ wife Stella Arroyo believes the 87-year-old Oscar winner – her husband of 22 years – may have autism.
In a new interview to promote his memoirs, We are fine, kid, Hannibal The star admitted that his wife, 69, once told him that some of his habits fit the criteria of an “Ausberger.”
“I’m obsessed with numbers. I’m obsessed with details. I like things in order. And memorization,” Hopkins said. The Sunday Times. “Stella looked at it and said, ‘You must have Asperger’s.’
He continued addressing his wife’s words: “I didn’t know what he was talking about. “I don’t even believe it.”
Asperger syndrome is a diagnosis that was previously given to some autistic people. The term has since been merged with other conditions into autism spectrum disorder (ASD). People with ASD may experience social and communication problems, obsessive interests, and repetitive behaviors.
Despite what the interviewer said silence of the lambs Hopkins was still unconvinced that the later diagnosis showed any benefit.
“Well, I guess I’m pessimistic because it’s all bullshit,” he said. “It’s all bullshit. ADHD, OCD, Asperger’s, blah, blah, blah. God, it’s called living.”
“It’s just being human, full of tangled webs and secrets and stuff. Full of warts and dirt and craziness, that’s the human condition. All these labels. I mean, who cares? But it’s fashionable now.”
in We are fine, kidHopkins mentions his separation from his daughter Abigail, 57, who he shares with his first wife, Petronella Barker. The two have been separated for more than 20 years, with the actor previously admitting he “wasn’t a good father.”
Hopkins left his family one night in a fit of alcoholism. Abigail was just one person then. She and Barker later divorced in 1972.
He wrote that “after realizing that I was unfit to be a father to Abigail, I vowed never to have any more children…I could not do to another child what I had done to her.”
When Hopkins regained consciousness, he tried to reconnect with Abigail and his mother in 1977.
“They didn’t want to be there,” he recalled. “During the meal, they keep catching each other’s eyes and making faces. Abigail can never seem to forgive me for abandoning her childhood family.”
He wrote that his separation from Abigail “is the saddest fact of my life and my greatest regret… It is my default hardship… I hope my daughter knows that my doors are always open to her… I want her to be well and happy.”
