Mark Wahlberg on leaving his gang past behind

Mark Wahlberg says leaving gang life behind wasn’t easy.

The 44-year-old, who was arrested numerous times in his youth and spent time in jail for assault, realised while behind bars that he needed to change his ways and get his life back on track but not everyone supported his decision, reports femalefirst.co.uk.

“(It was) just a matter of ‘OK, do I want to get high, end up in jail, or focus, get out of here and never look back? (There were a) few confrontations (with gang members),” Wahlberg told Men’s Health magazine.

The Ted 2 star, who has children Ella, 11, Michael, 8, Brendan, 6, and five-year-old Grace with wife Rhea Durham, says he never imagined he would go on to be as successful, and make his family as comfortable, as he has been with his movie career.

He said: “I’m able to provide for my family in a way that I never dreamt of, certainly in a way my parents weren’t able to provide for us. If my kids want to go to college, they’re going to be able to do all those things.”