You know what they say in show business: the show must go on. No matter what is happening behind the scenes a real professional actor will always finish what he started. Even if that man is dealing with horrible depression. Actors act, that’s what they do, and even if they’re weeping like crazy on the inside, they’ll still do their part because if the production fails, hundreds of people could get fired. Let’s talk about these heroes.
Here are 7 actors who played their roles fantastically despite struggling with depression.
1. Devon Murray
It’s often you see child actors with depression, but such is the case. Devon Murray, best known for portraying Seamus Finnigan in Harry Potter movies, confessed that year after year he was missing his friends and family more and more to the point that on his 16th birthday he was sitting alone in his fancy hotel room instead of going out. Later in 2016 he nearly committed suicide, but thankfully his family got through to him.
2. Humphrey Bogart
With a career spanning through decades, Bogart, or “Bogie” for short, starred in countless movies, like the 1956’s “The Harder They Fall”, which incidentally was Bogart’s last picture. Right around that time he was diagnosed with throat cancer, so he was basically in constant pain 24/7. Nobody on the set knew about his condition and they’d sometimes tell him they needed to shoot the scene again because Bogart’s eyes were too watery. As it later turned out it was all because of the pain. Yet he still did the reshoots and finished the movie. Sadly he didn’t get to see it.
3. Reid Ewing
He’s the dude who played Haley’s boyfriend Dylan on “Modern Family”, remember? Turns out he has a rare condition called “body dysmorphia disorder”, which basically means he saw a horribly ugly person every time he looked at his reflection. Ewing started getting plastic surgeries, but not to ruin his TV career, he had done them one at a time, so the viewers could get accustomed. In 2012 his suicidal depression started, but therapy helped a lot. To everyone going through similar hardships Ewing said: “Before seeking to change your face, you should question whether it is your mind that needs fixing.” And it’s almost over is the latter one.
4. Trey Parker and Matt Stone
Yes, these are the two geniuses behind “South Park”. They’re also known for “Team America: World Police” – a hilarious satire of American foreign policy as well as the 90’s action movies. As it turns out, the production of this film almost destroyed Trey and Matt’s partnership. Their loved ones left them, the family members made fun of them, even the puppets seemed to be snickering in the corner. After the movie was finished, the two swore to never do a puppet movie ever again.
5. Keanu Reeves
Keanu was in the middle of shooting “Speed” when he received the crushing news – River Phoenix, one of his closest friends, died by overdose. Needless to say, it almost destroyed the 23 year old rising star. The production of “Speed” was nearly shut down completely, but restarted after a short break, with cast and crew alike giving Reeves plenty of space and consideration as he dealt with his grief.
6. Martin Sheen
While shooting the iconic “Apocalypse Now” Coppola was a real psycho to the crew and actors, especially Martin Sheen, whom he pushed to his absolute limit. In later interviews Sheen confessed that it was a real hell on Earth, and that he wasn’t sure he’d survive the shoot. Of course, he did manage to finish the film even though he had a heart attack and a nervous breakdown in the meantime. Not to mention that one day when he felt so ill, a local priest administered him the last rites. Wow, that Coppola is no joke.
7. Robin Williams
It’s uncanny how this funny and kind soul could be carrying so much darkness inside of him. After decades of suppressing clinical depression for the sake of us, the viewers, Robin Williams eventually ended his own life in 2014 at the age of 63. If you look closely, you can see many roles in his career pointing at his mental state. But he was a real fighter still, and we miss his wit dearly. His last movie, “The Angriest Man in Brooklyn”, was like a mirror for Williams’ depression. The main character has only 90 minutes left to live and in one scene he starts a long rant about how unfair and meaningless our life is. This was the real Robin talking.
