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Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Ten public figures are commonly linked to ADHD, but only one of them, Simone Biles, has a first-person public disclosure that can be verified from the sources reviewed for this article. The other nine names come from a single archived submission to the Royal Commission into Victoria’s Mental Health System, which lists them as having publicly discussed ADHD. That list is a useful starting point for checking. It is not confirmation of each person’s diagnosis.
The ten names and what each one rests on
The names come from an archived submission to the Royal Commission into Victoria’s Mental Health System. The Commission did not independently establish any of these people’s diagnoses or disclosures, and the copy reviewed does not establish when the submission was written. Treat the table below as a map of where to look next, not as a verified roster.
| Name | Where the name appears | First-person disclosure verified for this article |
|---|---|---|
| Simone Biles | Archived submission; also her own public statement (September 2016) and a Laureus interview (2017) | Yes. See the Biles section below. |
| Jim Carrey | Archived submission only | Not established in the sources reviewed |
| Ryan Gosling | Archived submission only | Not established in the sources reviewed |
| Justin Timberlake | Archived submission only | Not established in the sources reviewed |
| Adam Levine | Archived submission only | Not established in the sources reviewed |
| Michael Phelps | Archived submission only | Not established in the sources reviewed |
| will.i.am | Archived submission only | Not established in the sources reviewed |
| Jamie Oliver | Archived submission only | Not established in the sources reviewed |
| Solange Knowles | Archived submission only | Not established in the sources reviewed |
| Richard Branson | Archived submission only | Not established in the sources reviewed |
Simone Biles: the one verified first-person disclosure
Biles is the only name on the list with a directly documented public statement about her own ADHD. Her case is also the most complicated, because the disclosure came in response to a privacy breach rather than as a planned announcement.
Her September 2016 statement
In September 2016, after confidential anti-doping records were released, Biles publicly said that she has ADHD and has taken medication for it since childhood. ABC News reported in 2016 that her use of methylphenidate had been approved through the applicable process. The intrusion into her medical privacy is the context for that statement, and the medication should not be presented as an advantage. Her statement, as reproduced by ABC News:
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“I have ADHD and I have taken medicine for it since I was a kid. Please know, I believe in clean sport, have always followed the rules, and will continue to do so as fair play is critical to sport and is very important to me.”
Her Laureus interview
In a Laureus interview published in 2017, Biles described how distraction can make it harder to stay focused in competition as she got older. She also said she had the extra paperwork needed to take medication as an athlete:
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“I feel like if you do need something, then you just need something. So I just have to have an extra form to help me; that I can take it, because I do have ADHD. Other than that, it’s for me to worry about and not other people.”
This interview describes her experience at the time it was recorded. It does not establish how her ADHD or treatment looks today.
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Why the list is weaker than its title suggests
The title promises ten confirmed cases, but the material reviewed supports one. Nine names appear in a compilation, and a compilation is not the same as nine separate primary-source disclosures. Each name on the list would need its own interview, post, memoir, or an authoritative report that directly quotes the person before it could be presented as a confirmed case.
Until that check is done, avoid writing about any of the nine as though their diagnosis is established. That includes claims about when they were diagnosed, what treatment they use, what symptoms they have, or how ADHD affects them now.
How to read celebrity ADHD stories
Public accounts from well-known people are useful, but they have limits. Psych Central notes that ADHD varies from person to person and cautions against idealizing celebrities who discuss it. Keep these points in mind:
- One person is one experience. A famous person’s account of focus, medication, or career does not describe what ADHD is like for most people.
- Success is not evidence of ADHD. Talent, money, and achievement have many causes. ADHD did not cause or guarantee any of these people’s results.
- Disclosure can be forced. Biles’s statement followed a breach of confidential medical information. Her words should be read as a response to that situation, not as a planned announcement.
- Dates matter. A 2016 or 2017 statement describes that period. People’s circumstances, treatment, and public comments can change.
Context on how common ADHD is
ABC News’s 2016 report on Biles’s disclosure stated that “at least 5 percent of children” in the United States have ADHD, attributing the figure to the American Psychiatric Association. This is a dated figure reported secondhand, and it refers to children. Cite it with that attribution and year, not as a current estimate for all ages.
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How to check a name yourself
- Search for the person’s own words first: a published interview, a social media post, a book, or a statement they made in their own name.
- Confirm the date. Note whether the statement describes the past, the present, or both.
- If you cannot find a first-person source, look for an authoritative report that directly quotes the person. A second-hand description of what someone supposedly said is not enough.
- Quote only what the person said. Do not add a diagnosis date, treatment, or symptoms unless the source states them.
Applying this check to the other nine names is the next step for anyone who wants a fully verified version of this list.
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