Robin William as Theodore Roosevelt in "Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb."
The movie comes to theatres this holiday season.
COURTESY OF ROBINWILLIAMS.COM
Actor and comedian Robin Williams passed away last month of an apparent suicide at the age of 63.
Williams is arguably one of the most gifted and influential actors of this century, possessing the ability to show such impressive depth of character and versatility in his works.
Be it a boarding school professor who preached “carpe diem” in “Dead Poets Society” (1989) or the lovable, charismatic genie in “Aladdin” (1992), Williams was always there to bring life and passion to the screen.
Williams won the academy award for “Good Will Hunting” in 1998, playing the mentor to the protagonist played by Matt Damon.
Some of Williams’s other notable rolls include the lovable alien Mork, from “Mork and Mindy” (1978-1982), a sassy English nanny in “Mrs. Doubtfire” (1993), the outspoken DJ in “Good Morning Vietnam” (1987), Theodor Roosevelt in the “Night at the Museum” series (2006-present) and Dwight D. Eisenhower in “Lee Daniels’ The Butler” (2013).
Robin Williams’s filmography contains 56 movies, several TV shows, and television appearances. He even performed in the Broadway play “Bengal Tiger at the Bagdad Zoo” (2009).
He was a writer, producer, director and standup comedian. He also spent much of his time giving back to the community, working with charities such as Comic Relief, St. Jude Children’s hospital and visiting US troops overseas.
The loss of Williams was unexpected, with many people turning to social media to vent their grief and frustration at the actor’s passing. Many felt that a favorite uncle and an important part of their childhood had died.
Meryl Streep on the topic of Williams’s death said, “It's hard to imagine unstoppable energy stopped.”
A man who brought such joy to so many people was actually broken on the inside. It is hard to fathom that those who bring so much light and laughter can also be harboring their own inner demons. But these people are not made of sunshine, rainbows and punch lines.
In the wake of Williams’s passing, the global discussion of suicide has been forced directly into the spotlight. This loss opened up the public forum for how we treat those who struggle with depression and ensuring that we are doing enough as a country to help prevent these tragedies from taking place.
Rest in peace, Robin. You will be missed.
Suicide Prevention Hotlines:
1-800-273-TALK
1-800-SUICIDE
911