'With drugs, he was a monster': Robin Williams’ friends shed light on actor's struggle with addiction
'When you did have that kind of fame, drugs were just given to you,' actress Gina Hecht said about Robin Williams
PARADISE CAY, CALIFORNIA: The friends of Robin Williams, who died in 2014 after suffering from Lewy body dementia, have opened up about his addiction issues.
Years after his suicide, the Vice TV series ‘The Dark Side of Comedy’ focuses on the comedian’s life, showing interviews of his friends, Fox News reported.
Actress Gina Hecht reportedly said in the show, “Robin's highs were so high and his lows were often low,” before mentioning, “When you did have that kind of fame, drugs were just given to you.”
‘You’re Robin Williams!’
Williams’ pal Allan Stephan recalled the time he had to make the ‘Patch Adams’ star believe in himself.
Stephan shared, “He [Williams] said, ‘Know anybody with any blow? I have to go on. I can’t go on without the blow.’ And I sat down and said, ‘I’m going to help you.’”
“He goes, ‘You have blow?’ I go, ‘No, are you out of your f---ing mind? You’re Robin Williams!’ And then I think after that he wouldn't get high when he had to perform,” the TV producer added.
‘With drugs, he was a monster’
Mike Binder also had a bad experience with Williams, which involved “a gram of coke.”
He revealed, “Robin said, ‘Let me take that. Do you mind if I grab a hit off that in the bathroom?’”
The actor further stated in the documentary, “He came back, and it was empty. It was like, ‘Whoa.’ It was like 8.15 at night.”
Williams expressed no regret but still said, “It was an accident, I'm sorry.”
“With drugs, he was a monster,” Binder asserted.
As per Canadian comedian Howie Mandel, a “big part of [Williams'] routine was cocaine and the drugs that he had done.”
The 67-year-old added, “And even though everybody was laughing, and it was really funny, he was really doing a lot of cocaine. He found the funny side of it, but ultimately it was real and really, it's not funny, but that's who he is.”
Robin Williams stopped doing drugs after John Belushi’s death
John Belushi’s 1982 death and the 1983 birth of his son, Zachary Pym Williams, reportedly forced Williams away from drugs.
His friend Stanley Wilson noted, “He knew what an amazing instrument that he had, and that it is all related to his mind and his imagination and his wit.”
Wilson also added, “The more stuff you do to deaden that, the more you’re going to burn some more brain cells. Robin didn’t want to do that.”
