Highlights
- Glenn Close’s friendship with Robin Williams was influenced by their shared experiences with mental health struggles.
- Close has spoken openly about her own battles with depression and takes daily anti-depressants to manage her symptoms.
- Close deeply admires Williams and has fondly spoken about him in various interviews.
The world is still mourning the loss of Robin Williams, who passed away in 2014 after a difficult illness. While the sweet and funny actor starred in many movies that grossed over $200 million, it was his 1982 film The World According to Garp that brought him one of his greatest friendships. Glenn Close and Robin Williams co-starred in the film and that seems to be how the two actors met each other. While Close mainly acts in dramas and Williams was known for his humor, they share a reputation as being some of the most legendary Hollywood stars.
Glenn Close is often candid, like the time when she said she starred in Guardians of the Galaxy for the salary. She has also shared a lot about Robin Williams over the years. It turns out that she has her own experience with mental health and she could have an innate understanding of what he went through.
Glenn Close And Robin Williams’s Friendship Was Influenced By Mental Health Struggles
Whenever Glenn Close talks about Robin Williams, she is incredibly compassionate. That must be because she has experienced mental health struggles in her own family.
Glenn Close runs Bring Change To Mind, a non-profit that helps those suffering with their mental health. According to CNN, Close is a mental health advocate because of the experiences that her sister, Jessie, has had.
Close said:
“It’s a chronic illness. It’s not who you are. It’s something, because we have this amazing, wondrous, fragile brain, it’s part of being a human being.”
The actress described how when she and her sister Jessie were growing up, Jessie dealt with anxiety. However, as the actress explained, there were no conversations about what was going on and “no vocabulary.” Jessie received a bipolar diagnosis when she turned 50, and Calen Pick, her son, has schizoaffective disorder.
In 2021, Close and her sister talked to People about how mental health can have a genetic part. Close explained that she has dealt with depression herself. She said she has:
“a low grade depression that can sometimes feel like a mist or a veil but you’ve gotten so used to living with it — that it’s not something you think of much. I take a daily dose of anti- depressants, not a huge dose, and it helps.”
Robin Williams Effortlessly Handled Oprah During This Uncomfortable Interview
Robin Williams was an amazing friend during an interview with Oprah Winfrey where he deflected uncomfortable questions.
Glenn Close’s Best Movie Roles
- Jenny Fields in The World According to Garp (1982)
- Sarah Cooper in The Big Chill (1983)
- Alex Forrest in Fatal Attraction (1987)
- Marquise Isabelle de Merteuil in Dangerous Liaisons (1988)
- Alicia Clark in The Paper (1994)
- Cruella de Vil in 101 Dalmatians (1996) and 102 Dalmatians (1999)
- Joan Castleman in The Wife (2017)
It’s unclear if Glenn Close knew that Robin Williams was struggling with his mental health at the end of his life. However, she must have an understanding of his pain and suffering because of her experiences. The actor’s death was so heartbreaking because after learning that he had Parkinson’s disease, Williams struggled with anxiety and depression. People hate to think of the hilarious, friendly, and warm actor dealing with so much in private. Since Close has watched her sibling struggle, it must be hard to think about what happened to her friend. She has also talked about knowing the symptoms and signs to look for in someone else, and while she has never said so, she might have seen that Williams was suffering.
According to CBS News, Zak Williams, Robin Williams’s son, was interviewed on the Genius Life podcast hosted by Max Lugavere and explained that his dad had depression and anxiety before he passed away.
Hank Azaria Made It Difficult For Robin Williams To Star In The Birdcage
Robin Williams is famous for making his co-stars lose it but Hank Azaria got the upper hand on the comedy legend.
It’s possible that the actor didn’t talk about his struggles because it can be hard to open up for fear of what others are going to say. As his wife Susan Schneider Williams told The Guardian, he had Lewy Body Dementia, and that leads to depression. She also explained in a piece for the American Academy of Neurology that while he had been depressed before, he hadn’t experienced depression for six years until he got sick.
As Close explained in her TEDWomen interview, she hopes to stop the “stigma” that those dealing with mental health issues face. She told a sad story about her talented painter nephew telling an art teacher about his diagnosis and being told to leave. Close would love for this to never happen to anyone else, which is an important and compassionate goal.
What Else Did Glenn Close Say About Robin Williams?
Glenn Close truly loves Robin Williams and sings his praises in interviews. As she told Sam Elliot as part of the Variety Studios Actors on Actors series:
“Robin was so wonderful. He worked hard and had that great gift of making people laugh when they needed to.”
The stars worked together after The World According to Garp. Close had a cameo in Hook, which was released in 1991. Fans didn’t realize that the pirate Gutless was played by Close until later.
In 2012, Close mentioned in an interview with The Scotsman that her role in Hook happened thanks to her friendship with Williams. She said, “I had visited the set of Hook because Robin Williams [who starred as Peter Pan] was a friend of mine, and took along my little girl, Annie, who was about three years old. And when we got there Steven Spielberg said, do you want to be pirate? And I said sure.”
What The Cast of Dead Poet Society Really Thought Of Robin Williams After Ethan Hawke Claimed There Was Friction Between Them
Ethan Hawke shared that he and Robin Williams didn’t get along on the Dead Poets Society set, but what did the other cast members say?
In 2015, when speaking at the Variety 2015 Power of Women luncheon, the actress mentioned Williams fondly. While talking about her family’s struggles, Close said, “Whoopi, I feel if Robin [Williams] was here today, he would be whispering in my ear, ‘a couple of jokes would help right now.’”
When the documentary Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story premiered at Sundance in January 2024, Close talked about Williams once again.
Robin Williams’s Best Movie Roles
- T.S. Garp in The World According to Garp
- John Keating in Dead Poets Society (1989)
- voice of Genie and Peddler in Aladdin (1992)
- Daniel Hillard/Euphegenia Doubtfire in Mrs. Doubtfire (1993)
- Alan Parrish in Jumanji (1995)
- Sean Maguire in Good Will Hunting (1997)
- Patch Adams in Patch Adams (1998)
- Gabriel Noone in The Night Listener (2006)
In the documentary, Glenn Close talked about the tight friendship Christopher Reeves and Robin Williams had. She said, “I always felt that if Chris was still around, Robin would still be alive.” Close’s comments went viral right away.
Source: NewsFinale
