Acclaimed Actor Anthony Hopkins Confronts Painful Estrangement from Daughter

In his recently published memoir "We Did OK, Kid," acclaimed actor Anthony Hopkins, now 87 years old, opens up about the painful estrangement from his daughter Abigail, who is currently 57 years old.

Hopkins recounts how his alcoholism and volatile marriage to British actress Petronella Barker, 83, ultimately led him to make the difficult decision to leave the family when Abigail was just 14 months old. He describes their relationship as a "disaster" from the start, with frequent fights over his drinking and Barker's resentment of his acting career.

One night, after returning home from a work trip, the situation escalated, and Hopkins says he became "afraid" for himself and his wife. At that moment, he decided to leave for good, whispering goodbye to his infant daughter before walking out.

While Hopkins provided financial support, he had little contact with Abigail and Barker for several years. He later tried to reconcile when Abigail was 9 and again as a teenager, but their relationship remained distant. "Abigail never seemed able to forgive me for leaving the family when she was a baby," Hopkins writes, acknowledging her reasons but expressing deep regret.

The estrangement has "broken his heart," and their up-and-down relationship has continued for decades, with brief periods of reconnection. Now sober for nearly 50 years, Hopkins hopes his "door is always open" to Abigail, wishing for her to be "well and happy" despite the pain of their past.