The Biggest Bombshells from Leslie Jones' New Memoir: From 'Ghostbusters' Drama to Private Health Battle

Comedian and ‘SNL’ alum gets more candid than ever in her new memoir ‘Leslie F*cking Jones’, out now

Leslie Jones can’t help but be brutally honest.

Ask the hit comic i Saturday night live alum, 56, why she decided to write her life story now, and it will remain true. “My agents called me and said, ‘Hey, do you want to write a book?’ And I said, ‘Yeah. Why not? F— it,'” she tells PEOPLE. “I knew that one day I might write a book, like when I retired or something, but I’m kind of glad I did it now so I can remember some of it.”

IN Leslie Fucking Jones, now available, Jones remembers a lot. Some stories are heartbreaking, many are funny, and most are inspiring. From overcoming childhood trauma and painful loss to a difficult road to stardom and recent health battles, Jones doesn’t hold back. Most importantly, she couldn’t be more proud of her journey.

“I proved myself right,” says the star. “I’m actually funny there too he was something about me. I’m Leslie F—ing Jones!”

Here are some of the biggest revelations from the star’s new book.

Jones experienced painful trauma as a very young child.

Leslie Jones.

Leslie Jones/Twitter

Jones reveals for the first time that she was sexually abused as a child. “One of my babysitters was messing with me,” she writes of the attack at age 2 or 3. “Man, I wish I could go back and fight that guy — that little girl couldn’t protect herself.”

The star wrote that looking at the pictures now, she noticed that the light in her smile dimmed around that age. She’s not sure if her late parents, Army veteran Willie Jones, Jr. and Sundra Diane Jones, were aware of what happened. But she credits them for instilling her confidence when she was a child. Mom would include her in after-school programs and connect her with mentors, while Dad would fill her with positive affirmations.

Leslie Jones talks about surviving childhood trauma in new memoir: ‘I never give up’ (exclusive)

“My dad would always tell me, ‘I don’t care what they tell you, you can do anything you want as long as you work hard,'” Jones tells PEOPLE. “‘They’ll tell you you’re black, they’ll tell you you’re female,’ he’d say, ‘but none of that matters’.”

Jones and her younger brother struggled to find their way as teenagers.

Leslie Jones with mother Diane and brother Keith.

Leslie Jones/ Facebook

In the ’80s, Jones’ family moved from Memphis, Tenn. to South Los Angeles after her father got a job at Stevie Wonder’s radio station. It was a difficult transition at first for Jones, who writes that she struggled early on to find her social footing at her new high school before making a name for herself as the class clown and 6-foot-1 basketball player.

But her younger brother Keith went through the most troubling transition, caught up in the gang violence prevalent in the area at the time. Jones writes that she wishes she could have intervened, but the peer pressure he was under was too much and his life took a dangerous turn from there.

Jones would have terrible arguments with her father, who struggled with addiction.

Leslie Jones’ father, Willie Jones, Jr.

Leslie Jones/ Facebook

Although she and her father were incredibly close throughout her life, Jones says he fell into alcoholism after a series of unfortunate events, including losing his job and her mother suffering a debilitating stroke. When Jones was in college, their relationship was strained and he occasionally physically abused him.

In one instance, Jones says he punched her in the face, causing her to leave home and seek refuge with her then-boyfriend. Both of Jones’ parents died of heart-related illnesses in the early 2000s. Recounting painful moments, like those with her father, while recording the audiobook for her memoir, “was very emotional, very difficult,” Jones tells PEOPLE. “I think I cried because I survived that s—.”

After the bombing in front of Jamie Foxx, Jones left comedy for six years.

Leslie Jones.

Leslie Jones/ Instagram

The star writes that she won a college comedy competition and decided to become a comedian in her late teens. One night she had a particularly bad performance in front of a then largely unknown young comedian named Jamie Foxx. She says he stood up for her in front of the audience, but later told her she needed to live more life and build more material before she could succeed in standup.

Jones says she took his advice and walked away from comedy for six years. At that time, she worked numerous odd jobs, from waitressing to marriage to selling perfume. “If you want to be a good comic, you’re going to be put through the wringer,” Jones tells PEOPLE. “And no one is funny until 10 years later.”

Jones decided early on not to have children.

Leslie Jones.

Jones writes that while living with her longtime boyfriend, she became pregnant several times in her twenties. Each time she decided to have an abortion. She says she eventually learned how to practice safe sex and prevent pregnancy through educational services offered by Planned Parenthood.

Jones tells PEOPLE that her fear of childbirth began after watching a video in ninth grade health class. “I remember running all the way home and I looked at my mom and said, ‘I’ll never do that!’ To this day, she says that she does not see motherhood in her future. “I didn’t get married and have kids,” she says, “but I don’t know if that’s what I wanted,” adding, “I always wanted to take care of myself.”

Jones’ brother Keith died in 2009 and the loss upset her.

The star writes that her brother’s story is a story of “sadness”. He never quite found his way and struggled with homelessness and drug addiction before he was found unconscious in a park in Santa Barbara. He died soon after.

“When my brother died, I was on the floor for two days,” she tells PEOPLE. Then “it was literally my common sense saying, ‘Hey, dude, we’ve got to pay the rent. I know you feel bad, but what are you going to do?’ Jones says the loss shook her deeply. depression, but also caused him to lose all inhibitions regarding his career and devote himself full throttle to comedy.

On ‘Saturday Night Live,’ Jones once told Melissa McCarthy he wanted to fight her for turning down her skit.

Leslie Jones and Colin Jost. Will Heath/NBC

After her longtime friend Chris Rock helped her land SNL auditioned, Jones joined the show’s writing team in 2014. But she struggled to find her footing early on. In one case, she wrote a commercial for host Melissa McCarthy that didn’t go over well.

“For the skit,” she writes, “Melissa and I would talk to some guy at the club: ‘You over there at this club trying to get these skinny beautiful girls? You know, when you go to her house, she won’t have any food in her fridge , right? Me, I’ve got a whole meatloaf and some mashed potatoes and some biscuits and beans!'”

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McCarthy wasn’t feeling it and later told Jones she hoped the rejection didn’t hurt her feelings. Jones writes, “‘You didn’t hurt my feelings,’ I said, ‘but I wanted to fight you anyway.’ Thank God she laughed at that, because I just wanted to make her laugh.”

Jones continued to make a name for herself, eventually becoming a full-fledged cast member known for her standout performances on the sketch series’ popular ‘Weekend Update’ segment. She also writes that she sometimes had to fight against stereotypes and advocate for diversity as one of the few black actors on the show. She left SNL 2019 and tells PEOPLE, “It’s like a bittersweet thing. I realized there’s only so much I can do in this machine.”

Jones believes that ‘Ghostbusters’ failed because of bad editing.

Leslie Jones, Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Kate McKinnon.

Cinematheque/Shutterstock

The comedian doesn’t mince words when she talks about her difficult experience filming Paul Feig’s all-female film Ghost busters remake along with Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig and Kate McKinnon. In her memoir, she writes about everything from the fierce racist backlash she faced from online trolls when she landed the role, to feeling unappreciated on set. “Sometimes I felt like I was lucky to be there,” she tells PEOPLE. “I said, ‘No, you’re all lucky to have me!'”

Although she enjoyed working with the director and cast, she says the producers made bad decisions, which made the 2016 film a box office disappointment. Jones believes excessive editing was to blame, with many of the best scenes ending up on the cutting room floor. “I’m sorry about the movie you had to see,” she says, “because the movie that was made was fucking amazing.”

In 2020, Jones underwent hemorrhoid surgery that left her bedridden for months.

Leslie Jones. getty images

The star reveals that she suffered from painful hemorrhoids for years before finally getting them removed just before the outbreak of the pandemic in 2020. “Let me tell you,” she writes, “of all the funny things in this book, hemorrhoids are no joke.” The recovery left Jones in excruciating pain from recurring anal spasms. She writes that it was actually the most difficult period in her life and she fell into depression.

The star credits DJ D-Nice’s Instagram club quarantines during the pandemic as helping her feel joy again amid her pain and the global health crisis.

After seeking therapy, she has come to terms with her past and is excited about her future.

Leslie Jones.

Peggy Sirota via Getty

Jones, who writes in stunning detail about her many experiences with loss and trauma, says she finally had the time and resources to do the work to come to terms with it all. “I went through therapy, everything I needed to get myself into a state of contentment with my mindset,” she tells PEOPLE. “When I read these stories now, I could take the time to say, ‘f—, man, that s— was hard when I was going through it.’

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