Arnold Schwarzenegger Blames His Father’s “Schizophrenic” Behavior For His Brother’s Death From Drunk Driving

Arnold Schwarzenegger got emotional in his new Netflix docuseries Arnold while opening up about his father and brother, and how his violent upbringing inspired him to make more of himself, but ultimately “destroyed” his brother.

The docuseries is told over three parts and follows Schwarzenegger through his multifaceted career.  The first episode shows the actor reminiscing on the early days of his career from his mandated Austrian military service to training at the Athletik Union Graz weight-lifting club “with the big boys.”

As the series continues, Schwarzenegger offers a quiet recollection of his childhood bedroom and speaks about his brother, Meinhard Schwarzenegger, who died in a car crash in 1971. Meinhard was driving drunk at the time of the incident. Schwarzenegger didn’t attend his funeral, nor his father’s funeral the following year.

Schwarzegger dedicates time to thinking about his brother and their relationship with their father. He suspects that their father’s “schizophrenic” behavior had a harsh impact on his brother, whom he refers to as “the darling of the family.”

“He was very artistic. Very smart. Read a lot, but I don’t think my brother ever was really happy,” Schwarzenegger says. “I think he started drinking because our upbringing was very tough.”

The actor goes on to say that his brother “could not sustain” the “brutality” they were subjected to at home, referring to “beatings” and violent outrages. Schwarzenegger recalls his father’s dual personalities, saying, “There was the kind father and then there were the other times where our father would come home drunk, and he would scream at three in the morning. We [would] wake up all of a sudden and our hearts were pounding because we knew what that meant. At any given time he could strike my mother and go crazy.”

Schwarzenegger says the “strange violence” was “beneficial” for him, describing himself as “very strong” and “determined.” He finishes the statement by reemphasizing that his brother “was more fragile.” Schwarzenegger ends the segment by saying, “Nietzsche was right, ‘That that does not kill you will make you stronger.’ The very thing that made me who I am today was the very thing that destroyed him.”

Arnold is currently streaming on Netflix.

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