Actor and now musician Cara Delevingne has spoken frankly about how sobriety reshaped her relationship with intimacy. The model, who stopped drinking in 2022, made the revelation in Playboy’s summer 2026 cover story.
The 33-year-old appeared in the magazine’s latest issue, photographed by Zoey Grossman, marking a moment she describes as a reclamation of her sexuality on her own terms. Delevingne offered a raw look at what intimacy feels like without substances to blur the edges.
Cara Delevingne gets candid about sober sex and chasing validation
“Sex sober after all of that is definitely difficult,” Cara Delevingne told the magazine. “It changes, but it’s so much deeper and so much more emotional.” She admitted that she previously conflated physical intimacy with self-worth. “I used to put a higher value on sex and validation from people,” she said. “I used to think, ‘Oh, I’m a pervert. I’m a really horny person.’ But I think [I was] seeking love and validation through sex.”
The shift, she explained, required rethinking how she connects with her own body. “Sex is a language, too, and your own sexuality, what turns you on, is like a beautiful dance you play with yourself,” she said. “So many people spend so much more time on how they want to be perceived by others, and not their own sexual relationship with themselves—loving yourself and turning yourself on.”
That self-discovery has changed how she experiences closeness. Delevingne has been dating musician Minke since 2022, a relationship she credits with offering stability. “She’s a normie,” Delevingne said. “I mean, she’s not sober, but she has a drink. We’re very different. I can’t date someone like myself, ever—I come with a lot of stuff.”
She added, “She’s the most incredible person I know. We’re best friends, obviously, lovers, and everything else, but I’ve never had a relationship like it and felt so close to someone and felt so seen” (via E News).
The Playboy shoot itself represents a full-circle moment. Cara Delevingne, who identifies as a lesbian and is believed to be the first openly gay woman on the magazine’s print cover, said the experience felt like stepping into her prime. “I’ve never felt more comfortable in my body and in my sexuality,” she said.
