A source close to Presley Gerber says the 27-year-old model was struggling and “seemed a little off” in the weeks before he died at a California rehab facility.
Presley, the son of supermodel Cindy Crawford, 59, and hospitality entrepreneur Rande Gerber, 63, checked into the Santa Monica treatment center over the weekend seeking help for longstanding addiction and mental health battles, the source exclusively shared on Monday. He was pronounced dead at 9:45 Sunday morning, roughly ten minutes after Santa Monica Police Department officers responded to a report of a possible overdose, per the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner.
“He seemed a little off in recent weeks. Something was just not there. Energetically, he didn’t seem like himself,” the source said.
The insider added that Presley “felt like he was lacking purpose in his life,” “hadn’t really found his place” and “didn’t really know where he wanted to go and what he wanted to do.”
“He was struggling with a lot of things, but he wanted so, so badly to be free of his addictions,” the source lamented. “He was such a good kid.”
Presley’s final Instagram post, uploaded August 5, showed no outward sign of distress. In a nine-slide carousel, the smiling model struck various poses in a garden while showing off his Vuori outfit.
The source said Presley had grappled with self-worth issues throughout his life. “He’s always suffered from a huge lack of self-esteem and had trouble accepting his real self and feeling fully confident in who he was as a person,” the insider explained.
The nepo baby had been open about his substance abuse history, previously admitting to abusing alcohol, opioids, painkillers, anti-anxiety medications, benzodiazepines like Xanax and dissociative general anesthetics like ketamine. He was arrested for driving under the influence in December 2018 at age 19. At the time of his death, he was struggling with “the full gamut,” the source said.
Presley grew up in Malibu’s celebrity enclave, an environment the source described as both privileged and isolating. “He was such a kind person, but he grew up in that strange Malibu world where it’s very easy to fall into drugs and drinking as you are growing up,” the insider noted. “It can be brutal out there. Yes, it’s a lovely lifestyle, but it’s also very isolated in a way and that can be hard and make substances an easy temptation to turn to.”
The Gerber-Crawford family spent time with Presley last week, with the source noting he was “very close with his family” and saw his father specifically. “The family is asking for privacy during this very difficult and painful time,” a rep for the clan said.
First responders found Presley in cardiac arrest, according to 911 dispatch audio. His cause and manner of death remain pending, with the medical examiner stating that “additional testing and/or studies were requested in order to make a determination.” Investigators do not suspect foul play.
The aspiring model had attempted to follow the career paths of his mother and younger sister Kaia Gerber, 23, who has become one of fashion’s most in-demand faces. Presley’s own modeling work never reached comparable heights, a gap that appeared to weigh on him as he searched for direction.
“It’s a very carefree way of life, but with that comes other temptations,” the source said of the Malibu upbringing that shaped Presley’s adolescence and young adulthood.
