Ben Says Owen "Doing Really Well"
While Owen Wilson has yet to speak out about his reported suicide attempt last month, that hasn't stopped one of his high-profile pals from stepping forward and praising the actor's good spirits and recovery.
While appearing on the Ellen DeGeneres Show Friday to promote his own upcoming film, Ben Stiller fielded the requisite question about his frequent collaborator's progress.
"He's doing really well," said Stiller, stopping short of revealing anything too personal about the star's healing process.
"I sort of like to protect his privacy cause I feel like it's his own thing. But he's a really good friend of mine. He's an incredible guy and I wish him as everybody does, all the best."
"Yeah, we do," DeGeneres echoed.
Wilson was originally slated to appear in Tropic Thunder, a film Stiller wrote, stars in and is currently directing in Hawaii. The blond Texan had signed on to appear in an uncredited cameo in the comedy, amounting to just a few days work, but pulled out in the wake of his hospitalization. Last week, Matthew McConaughey signed on to replace Wilson in the part.
Also appearing in the movie is British comedian Steve Coogan, a close pal of Wilson's who was forced into the headlines last month when former girlfriend Courtney Love blamed Coogan for allegedly keeping drugs in Wilson's life. Coogan adamantly denied the claims and threatened legal action.
On Thursday, Coogan was photographed leaving Wilson's Santa Monica home after spending an hour inside with his recovering pal.
"He's doing fine," he told the Daily Mail of the visit.
Meanwhile, Ben Stiller's father, Jerry, also spoke out about his Zoolander costar, telling People at the premiere of his son's The Heartbreak Kid Thursday that he was "surprised" to hear of Wilson's personal travails, but that he had high hopes for the actor.
"I know that he'll put his life together," he said, adding that Ben had been an "advocate" for "intervention and all that stuff."
Wilson was hospitalized on Aug. 26 for what the Santa Monica police deemed a suicide attempt. While the actor has yet to address the matter, he issued a statement in the wake of the incident, requesting privacy to heal. He bowed out of planned appearances to promote his new film, The Darjeeling Limited, including its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival.
At the festival, which took place just a week after Wilson's hospitalization, director and former college roomie Wes Anderson told reporters that the star was already "doing very well" and had been "making us all laugh."
"When he's ready, he's going to speak for himself much better than any of us could," he said at the time. "He has a very good way with words."





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