Woody Harrelson explains why he hasn’t had a mobile phone for three years

‘I don’t like the appendage on my appendage,’ the actor said

Woody Harrelson has revealed why he’s been living without a mobile phone for the past three years.

The White Men Can’t Jump actor, 62, made changes to his technology habits after realising he was addicted to his device.

Harrelson admitted at one stage he could hardly make it through dinner with his friends without reaching for his phone whenever there was a “lull in the conversation”.

Speaking to Ted Danson on their Where Everybody Knows Your Name podcast, the Cheers star said he doesn’t like to be “readily available” to people trying to contact him.

“Let me explain something about Woody: He doesn’t have a phone,” Danson revealed. “He’s one of those bullies in life that make other people carry his phone for him.”

“Well, that’s not exactly true,” Harrelson responded. “I just don’t like to have to be readily available to any human being at any time.”

He added: “I like to be in touch with people, in a way, but I don’t like the appendage on my appendage.”

Harrelson said he rarely used his mobile “as a phone” or for access to the internet but instead was hooked on answering endless text messages.

Woody Harelson has revealed he hasn’t carried a mobile phone with him for three years (2023 Invision)

The Oscar-winning actor had previously set himself restrictions, like only using his phone for two hours per day, in a bid to combat his addiction.

“I’ve already hit my limit at 9:30,” he admitted of the experiment. “So, I woke up and I’ve been on it two hours already, because you know how it can just keep going and going.”

Eventually, Harrelson opted to ditch his mobile altogether. “I admire what you do with phones, by the way, Woody,” his co-host praised. “I need to emulate that.”

Harrelson and Danson previously co-starred together on the NBC sitcom Cheers, which ran for 11 seasons from 1982 to 1993.

Woody Harrelson in 'Cheers' (NBC)

The actors have since reunited after more than three decades to co-host their new Cheers podcast Where Everybody Knows Your Name – a nod to the series’ theme song.

Previously on the podcast, Harrelson revealed he had been in a motorcycle accident earlier this month. “I did go over my handlebars,” he told Danson, calling the incident “embarrassing”.

The actor explained that he was “passing this Tesla on the left that I thought was moving a little slow but I didn’t realise he was moving slow because he’s taking a left”.

Confirming that the White Men Can’t Jump star was on a motorcycle, O’Brien asked if that was his primary mode of transportation.

“Well, I always feel like the shortest distance between two points in LA is a motorcycle. So I tend to take it,” Harrelson said. “But today, it proved not to be very fast.”

He added of the aftermath: “There was some pain involved – I felt the pain – but I never thought I’d be killed or anything.”