JASON BATEMAN 'I NEARLY LOST IT ALL'

The star's hard partying once threatened to derail his life

Jennifer Aniston once declared of close friend Jason Bateman, Jason, 53, is now riding high on the success of Netflix hit Ozark, but admits he had a troubled transition going from child star to serious actor.

"Having longevity in this business is not easy. Especially starting out as a child actor. Usually that's a story that doesn't always end well. When I actually met Jason it was kind of looking like it could go either way."

"I started having a ton of fun, trying to catch up for having worked so hard," says the star, who got his Hollywood start aged 12 with a role on TV's Little House On The Prairie.

He admits indulging in drinking and drugs ended up hurting his career.

"Having thought, 'This is really fun,' and staying at the party a little bit too long, I'd lost my place in line in the business - it was a case of trying to claw that back towards the end of the '90s," says Jason.

DRIVING FORCE