Jonah Hill texts: Men who brag about going to therapy tend to be emotional abusers

By Alma Fabiani

Published Jul 10, 2023 at 01:04 PM

Reading time: 3 minutes

46635

Newsflash: Jonah Hill is a controlling, emotionally abusive dick. As much as it breaks my heart to say this, it only took a couple of screenshots shared by the Superbad actor’s ex-girlfriend to confirm the sad reality that even nice guy Jonah is… well, not so nice. But looking back, we should have known that the behaviour displayed by the 39-year-old was too good to be true.

What did Jonah Hill say in his texts to Sarah Brady?

Before we delve into the specifics of Hill’s therapy-obsessed public persona, it’s important that we first clarify how the whole controversy began. Starting on Friday 7 July 2023, professional surf instructor Sarah Brady (who dated the star for about a year back in 2021), began sharing a series of Instagram stories detailing Hill’s alleged “emotionally abusive” behaviour by posting DMs and texts she claims were sent by him.

“Sharing this publicly now because keeping it to myself was causing more damage to my mental health than sharing it could ever do,” Brady wrote on the social media app. Among some of the screenshots posted publicly, one alleged conversation appears to show the actor scolding Brady for posting images of her surfing in a swimsuit. A gentle reminder that she’s a freaking surf instructor…

Outlining his “boundaries” for their relationship, Hill went on to ask Brady to remove said pictures from her Instagram account, which she actually did. In response, the actor said it was “a good start,” but added that she still doesn’t “seem to get it.”

“But it’s not my place to teach you. I’ve made my boundaries clear,” Hill continued, according to Brady’s post. “You refuse to let go of some of them and you’ve made that clear and I hope it makes you happy.”

https://twitter.com/LyfeIzWeerd/status/1677748036964093953

If you think that’s bad, wait until you hear the other rules Hill listed for his then-partner. “Surfing with men,” modelling, posting pictures of herself “in a bathing suit,” and having friendships with “women who are in unstable places from your wild recent past beyond getting lunch of a coffee or something respectful,” aren’t allowed if you’re dating the 21 Jump Street star, apparently.

Brady also claims she and Hill were seeing a couple’s therapist who instructed her to “paddle away” from men while surfing and tell them: “I’m going to go talk to my boyfriend.” It’s safe to say that I personally wouldn’t recommend whoever it is that they consulted for advice.

As you can expect, as soon as Brady shared these private messages on Instagram, shit pretty much hit the fan for Hill, who was, until now, mostly known for his down-to-earth and anti-toxic masculinity behaviour.

Jonah Hill, the poster boy for therapy

The couple made their red carpet debut in December 2021 when they wore matching blue suits and loafers at the Don’t Look Up premiere. They reportedly split sometime in 2022, and Hill has since recently welcomed his first child with now-girlfriend Olivia Millar.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Vogue Australia (@vogueaustralia)

For quite some time now, the actor had been very candid about his personal struggles and how his journey with therapy has helped him throughout some of his life’s hardest moments. He was so pro-therapy in fact, that he eventually directed the Netflix documentary Stutz, which focuses on Phil Stutz, a Los Angeles-based psychotherapist who has, as Hill puts it, “changed my life.”

Reversing the roles, Stutz saw Hill interview his psychotherapist while also diving into his own struggles with weight, anxiety, depression, and panic attacks. Released in 2022, the documentary did a great job of shedding light on the numerous benefits therapy can provide while also platforming Stutz’s unique visual model. I can’t say that, at the time, I didn’t feel moved and inspired by the message Hill worked so hard on getting across.

Unfortunately, the actor’s introduction to therapy is probably what led him to present this controlling behaviour with Brady as him setting his “boundaries”—a term often given by therapists to their clients to ensure that uncomfortable mentally damaging situations are avoided. In Hill’s case, just like many other abusers, he took this language and weaponised it as a defence for his harmful actions.

How emotional abusers are weaponising therapy

Don’t get me wrong, I can’t insist enough on how important therapy is and how helpful it can be—trust me, I’ve got years of shrink-induced realisations to back up this claim. The issue we’re currently facing is how people, mostly men, are now using terms, models, and insights they’ve gained from therapy to justify controlling and abusive behaviours.

Manipulators like Hill can use the incredibly helpful tools presented to them through therapy, and turn them around to work in their favour, in turn giving them a new sense of superiority, and making them that much more dangerous and toxic.

As American comedian cleverly wrote on Twitter, “give a man some therapy, and you heal him for a day; teach a man therapy words and you feed his manipulation for a lifetime.”

Keep On Reading

By Fatou Ferraro Mboup

Mark Zuckerberg criticised as Meta allegedly censors abortion pill providers, raising Trump alliance fears

By Charlie Sawyer

Pope picking 101: What actually happens during Conclave

By J'Nae Phillips

The gyaru revival: Why Gen Z are embracing Japan’s most rebellious aesthetic

By Fatou Ferraro Mboup

Lily Phillips announces pregnancy hours after Bonnie Blue teases having cravings

By Abby Amoakuh

White Lotus star called out for tone deaf comments about double standards with male and female nude scenes

By Abby Amoakuh

Are Bhad Bhabie and Alabama Barker feuding? 2025’s hottest rap beef explained

By Fatou Ferraro Mboup

What is the Baby Barnet cold case? TikToker’s AncestryDNA test leads to her grandma’s arrest

By Joe Pettit

Why the internet made a CEO’s killer its new sex symbol

By Charlie Sawyer

From performing at Mother Teresa’s canonization to 10+ film roles, no one works as hard as Rita Ora’s agent

By Fatou Ferraro Mboup

MrBeast hunts for volunteers to test the viral question: who would win between 100 men and one gorilla?

By Abby Amoakuh

I sat down with two professional matchmakers to solve Gen Z’s dating fatigue

By Charlie Sawyer

Did Tim Cheese murder John Pork, and how is Simon Claw involved? The lore, explained

By Fatou Ferraro Mboup

Who is Onijah Robinson, the 33-year-old woman who’s refusing to leave Pakistan after failed teen romance?

By Fatou Ferraro Mboup

Was Adam Sandler kicked out of the 2025 Oscars or was it staged? Fans speculate after his fiery outburst

By Charlie Sawyer

Who is Dee Devlin, the fiancée of Conor McGregor who just insulted victims of SA everywhere?

By Fatou Ferraro Mboup

Grace Jabbari drops assault lawsuit against Jonathan Majors, but unanswered questions remain

By Abby Amoakuh

Lewis Hamilton and Sharon Stone support Millie Bobby Brown after she calls out disgusting media misogyny

By Fatou Ferraro Mboup

Asteroid 2024 YR4 might be heading to Earth, and Gen Z have a lot to say about it

By Fatou Ferraro Mboup

TikTok’s viral Chubby Filter sparks backlash for promoting fatphobia

By Abby Amoakuh

Are we tired of sustainability? Experts and retailers break down the dangers of greenhushing