The news about the award-winning comedian Robin Williams' alleged suicide due to depression and addiction stunned everyone, particularly those who worked with him. His long battles with depression and addiction were much publicized but where never evident. He shows up at work like any typical actor.
"He was ready to work, he was the first one on the set," said John Bailey, cinematographer for the movie "The Angriest Man in Brooklyn", in an interview by The New York Times. Another senior movie agent who requested for anonymity said "he was always 1,000 percent reliable. He was almost impossibly high functioning."
Williams remained cheerful and committed to his art. With his age, he still worked hard to keep himself moving and have "his personal demons caged" (as believed by the agents and studio executives who has gotten to work with him). He had several projects at hand and still had a lot of projects in mind.
"After working back-to-back projects, Robin is simply taking the opportunity to fine-tune and focus on his continued commitment, of which he remains extremely proud," shared a representative of the Academy Award winner in a previous interview by ABC News.
The illnesses were more powerful than Robin Williams that on Monday he allegedly committed suicide to end his depression and addiction. His publicist confirmed that "he has been battling severe depression of late".
According to the White House Conference on Mental Health, "Depression is the cause of over two-thirds of the 30,000 reported suicides in the U.S. each year."
Undoubtedly, Robin Williams' suicide due to depression and addiction has paved the way for some personalities to address depression.
Lady Gaga said in her tweet: "Perhaps this tragedy will shed light on the seriousness of depression." After a few minutes, she followed this up with: "Please reach out to https://bornthiswayfoundation.org if you are struggling with depression, mental illness or addiction. You are not alone."
