After actor Jonathan Rhys-Meyers refused treatment by paramedics when he was found slumped on the floor at his home on Tuesday, it seemed that he might have tried committing suicide. However, he was taken to the hospital and released shortly being treated, so it's more likely that the actor that has spent time in rehab for alcohol abuse simply relapsed -- he surely would have been kept for observation and not released so quickly if doctors believed he had really tried to take his life. However, a surprising number of celebrities have attempted suicide and failed, going on to prove that their lives were worth living after all. Here's a look at a few celebs who have recovered after trying to end it all:
Owen Wilson
Four years ago Wilson attempted suicide by slashing both of his wrists, an action that surely shocked fans of his lighthearted funny films like "You, Me and Dupree" and "Wedding Crashers." Owen was reportedly depressed after his split with actress Kate Hudson, and rumors of problems with drug use may have also contributed to his mental meltdown. He reconnected with Kate a short time after he was released from Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, and went on to complete his movie "Marley & Me" with Jennifer Aniston. Owen has been busy ever since, with his most recent movies being "Cars 2" and the Woody Allen movie "Midnight in Paris." He also welcomed a son named Robert Ford Wilson earlier this year, but there's been a little trouble in paradise lately -- Wilson and his baby mama Jade Duell recently split because the actor isn't ready to commit. He allegedly wants to spend more time with his friends (both male and female) while playing the role of a family man only when he feels like it. So here's to hoping that Lightning McQueen isn't heading down the wrong road again.
Halle Berry
Berry shockingly admitted in an interview that she once tried to commit suicide via carbon monoxide poisoning. The actress' first husband David Justice collapsed in 1997, and the end of her relationship with the Atlanta Braves baseball star was the reason Halle found herself sitting in her car waiting to die. However, she stated that the thought of her mother saved her. She said of her mom, "She sacrificed so much for her children, and to end my life would be an incredibly selfish thing to do. It was all about a relationship. My sense of worth was so low. I promised myself I would never be a coward again." She then went through another messy marriage with Eric Benet (which included some tome in sex rehab), but seemed to really find love later on with model Gabriel Aubry. However, the two have now split and are currently involved in a messy custody battle over their daughter, and it's showing no signs of ending anytime soon. But on the bright side of things, Halle would have never been blessed with little Nahla or her little gold man had she taken her life (oh, and earning a Razzie for her work in "Catwoman" was pretty impressive, too).
Drew Barrymore
This child star tried to grow up a little too quickly, landing in rehab when she was 12 years old -- she'd already started drinking, smoking marijuana, and doing cocaine by then. After she realized that her party girl reputation was making it impossible to land movie roles, she attempted suicide at the age of 15. After the third time she was released from rehab, Drew moved in with musician David Crosby and his wife and started to turn her life around, writing her memoir "Little Girl Lost" and filing for emancipation from her mother, who had introduced her to the very dark, adult side of Hollywood. It's amazing that Drew has come as far as she has, and despite having a short-lived childhood, she describes herself as having "a childlike sense of fun" and being an optimistic person most of the time. Up next the loveable actress that has managed to turn her frown upside down will be starring in a movie about a different kind of love from that featured in her many romantic comedies. In "Everybody Loves Whales," she'll be playing a Greenpeace volunteer trying to help save three whales trapped in the Arctic Circle. The movie based on a true story will also star John Krasinski and Kristen Bell, so it sounds like it should be a popular crowd pleaser that will force everyone to fall in love with Drew just a little bit more.
Eminem
This rapper might seem tough onstage, but he's broken down and tried to find a way out through suicide. In 1996 Em attempted to take his life by overdosing on Tylenol after his girlfriend Kim left him and wouldn't allow him to see his daughter Hailie. However, the attempt failed, and he reconciled with his family, marrying Kim and getting back to work on his music so that he could give his daughter everything he didn't have growing up. In 1997, "The Slim Shady LP Demo" was released, and the rest is history. Of course the controversial rapper's life has been full of ups and downs ever since, including the end of his marriage, a custody battle with Kim, and attacks on his often violent music lyrics. Interestingly enough, the latest thing Em has been attacked for is his music video for "Space Bound," which shows a character played by the rapper strangling his girlfriend after discovering that she has been unfaithful. He then commits suicide by shooting himself in the head (so it really looks like Em's life has come full circle, sort of).
Elton John
Eminem's old Grammy duet partner once tried to commit suicide by sticking his head in a gas oven. He was engaged to marry heiress Lisa Woodrow and just couldn't bring himself to do it (for reasons that are fairly obvious now). Luckily song writer Bernie Taupin walked in on the singer and laughed -- Elton had his head on a pillow; the stove set on low; and all the windows in his apartment open. Elton actually wrote the 1975 song "Someone Saved My Life Tonight" about the incident, and it's a good thing he didn't go through with it -- he is now one of the most beloved musicians in the world, and he's happily raising his son Zachary with hubby David Furnish. And of course his success is also a great inspiration for many gay men and women trying to conquer prejudice and find their places in the world.
So even if Rhys-Meyers really did attempt suicide, the celebrities here are all evidence that there is a light at the end of the tunnel and many reasons why death isn't the answer to life's many problems.
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