AceShowbiz - Bradley Cooper is "very lucky" to have been sober for 19 years. The 48-year-old actor confessed he had some "wild years" but is thankful they were well behind him before he became a household name thanks to his role in comedy "The Hangover" because it meant he didn't "get lost" in fame.

"I mean, 'The Hangover,' which was - that was pretty career-changing. I was 36 when that happened, so, you know, I was already in the game for 10 years, just banging around. I didn't get lost in fame," he said in a clip from his upcoming appearance on "Running Wild with Bear Grylls: The Challenge" obtained by Access Hollywood.

Bear asked, "But you definitely had some wild years?" Bradley replied, "In terms of like alcohol and drugs, yeah. That had nothing to do with fame, though. But I was lucky, you know? I got sober at 29 years old, and you know, I've been sober for 19 years. I've been very lucky."

The actor told how his experiences with addiction informed his performance as Jackson Maine in "A Star Is Born" and he was grateful he was "at ease" with his issues by that point in his life. He said, "It made it easier to be able to really enter in there, and thank goodness I was at a place in my life where I was at ease with all of that, so I could really let myself go."

In another clip obtained by People magazine, the "Guardians of the Galaxy" star opened up about his father's death and described it as a "blessing" that he was by his dad's side when he passed away. He said, "I wish my dad was around to enjoy more of it, but we all recognise how lucky we've been...It was a blessing though. He gave me a huge gift; he died in my arms. To see that kind of factual example of mortality."

But Bradley admitted things were "not great" in the aftermath because of how his outlook changed. Asked if his dad's death had changed how he looks at things, he replied, "Oh yeah. Some ways for the worst. I definitely had a nihilistic attitude after, for a little bit. Just like, wow I'm gonna die. It was not great for a little bit until I realised I had to just embrace who I actually am and try to find peace with that. And then it sorta evened out."

The "Silver Linings Playbook" actor has six-year-old daughter Lea with former partner Irina Shayk and he hopes the little girl will learn from his mistakes. He said, "I mean you learn from your predecessor's mistakes and I'll make tons that hopefully Lea will learn from and then being rigorous with myself to grow. To help unburden her with any of my bulls***."