Sober for 2 years, Sergio Hondjakoff wants to become an activist for the recovery of drug users

TV favorite in the 2000s, Sergio Hondjakoff, was known for his role as Cabeção in “Malhação” (Globo). After leaving the teen soap opera, however, the actor went through a dark period. A drug addict, he disappeared from TV, reappeared in embarrassing images on the internet and, after a long battle with addiction, is completing two years of sobriety.

In recent years, Sérgio has been admitted to rehabilitation clinics several times — the longest of which lasted ten and a half months. During the period, he lost his grandmother, whom he was unable to say goodbye to. “It was very difficult”, he recalls, in an interview with F5, about time in prison. “But adversities are made for us to learn from them.”

“I’m staying clean and trying to be better and better, to make new mistakes and not repeat old mistakes,” he says, reproducing jargon from addiction help groups.

POLITICAL ACTIVISM

Now recovered, Sergio has been trying to dedicate himself to a healthy life and resuming his career as an actor. But he still wants to go further: he intends to use his popularity and his place of speech to become an activist for the treatment of drug addicts in Brazil.

“I contribute by talking about my empirical experience and staying sober, but I still want to do more than that. There are political issues that I still need to base myself on, find my position and my narrative”, he says. “In these intensive ‘rehabs’ that I underwent from 2016 to now, I met therapists who moved me with their lectures talking about the social cause of chemical dependency”, she says.

Sérgio views policies aimed at reducing harm positively, but believes that the strategy alone is not enough to solve the problem of chemical dependency in the country. “THE CAPS [Centro de Atenção Psicossocial] It’s wonderful, but it can’t meet all the demand”, he says.

Inspired by his own story of overcoming, he dreams of adequate public institutions that could receive and treat addicts. According to him, there is a proliferation of private clinics and many “leave something to be desired in aspects such as reception”.

“Many still have that philosophy: ‘If the guy messed up and his family admitted him, he has to put some poison in there to stay in line’. But it shouldn’t be like that”, he points out. “Treatment should awaken the addict’s real desire to stay clean.”

Sergio states that, since the days of “Malhação”, he felt an inclination towards politics, but never went further. Now, approaching 40 years old, “at the height of his maturity”, he says, he finds himself inclined towards acting in this direction. “I want to have the honor of being able to improve people’s lives.”

BACK ON SET

On his return to acting, Sergio will soon be in cinemas with “Caipora”, a folkloric horror-thriller, as defined by director Bellamir Freire. In the cast, he stars alongside Kayky Brito, Camila Camargo and Nill Marcondes.

Kayky and Sergio play a pair of clumsy police officers who investigate the disappearance of a group of teenagers in an indigenous territory. “My character is a comic relief. I was able to satisfy my longing for recording with that energy of Cabeção, with a naive humor. He’s a fearful police officer, he’s scared to death of his boss. [Nill Marcondes] and the supernatural events that happen in the film”, he says.

Backstage, Sergio made Kayky Brito laugh. “He had every fit of laughter on set, there was one day when I thought he was going to collapse. It was really good to see him well, going back to work and making him laugh”, says Sérgio, who expressed solidarity with the process of colleague’s recovery after being run over in 2023.

While the film isn’t released, Sergio’s sources of income have been “publications” on social media and personalized birthday messages. His musical career is also still active: after experimenting with funk, he turned to electronic music.

“I’ve always had a history with electronic music. Even though I’m clean and don’t use any recreational substances, I’m still a fan of electronic music and all its aspects, from 1990s music to contemporary music”, he says, who, Soon, he will tour the interior of Minas Gerais at “rave” style parties.

“It’s really cool to play at these events, not only to generate income, but also because of the transcendental energy of the crowd. I receive a lot of affection from the staff, I awaken this nostalgic affective memory”, he says. “It helps with my recovery and my spiritual awakening.”

Father of Benjamin, aged 4, Sérgio is single and “focused on his studies and recovery”, according to what he says. He also has an important issue to resolve: repairing his relationship with his mother, who was shaken after years of drug addiction. “I want to try to be a good son. For many years I left that aside,” he confesses. “I’m still discovering this new way of living.”