The acting industry, with its lights and cameras, usually projects a perpetual success image. However, behind the play of the stage a much more rough reality is hidden. Robin Williamswho for decades was synonymous with charisma and comic genius, lived in his own flesh the wear of a prolonged career and the economic pressure that can even affect the most emblematic figures of Hollywood.
As noted Michael Gordon in Far OutActing is not just an artistic vocation: it is also a daily battle in a highly competitive market. According to industry estimates, just between 2% and 5% of those who are part of the film actors union manage to subsist exclusively from their work as interpreters. Williams, despite his fame, was no exception to that dynamic.
During the 1980s and 1990s, Williams starred in an unforgettable successes: Mrs. Doubtfire, Jumanji, Patch Adams y Aladdin They positioned him as one of the most profitable and beloved actors in the public. His ability to travel between unbridled comedy and the deep drama made him a unique figure.
But with the passage of time, its presence in the great productions began to be diluted. Williams opted for a more introspective and demanding course: independent cinema.
At this stage he starred films such as The best father in the world, Shrink, boulevard y Brooklyn’s most furious man. These films challenged him from the acting point of view and were praised by the specialized criticism, although they failed loudly at the box office: among all, they barely exceeded one million dollars in collection.
While his career took a more artistic than commercial turn, Williams’s personal life also crossed significant transformations. In 2010 he divorced his second wife, and the following year he married Susan Schneider. The couple moved to San Francisco with the aim of giving the actor a life closer to his children. “My children amazed me very much,” he confessed then in an interview, evidencing the importance that paternity had for him in this new stage.
However, changes in their lifestyle and the loss in their income forced Williams to make difficult decisions. In 2013 he announced that he would sell his ranch in The Napa Valleyan emblematic property that could no longer afford. The economic situation, added to the financial consequences of its previous divorces, led him to reconsider land that he did not explore since the 70s: open television.
In 2013, with 62 years, Robin Williams signed a contract with CBS To star in The Crazy Onesa television comedy in which he shared cast with Sarah Michelle Gellar. The return surprised both his followers and industry analysts. But he was transparent: his decision was based on a concrete need for financial stability.
At that time, in an interview with Paradeit was direct:“The idea of having a stable job attracts me. There are invoices to pay”.
Williams also referred with irony to the impact that his divorces had on their economy: “I lost enough. The divorce is expensive. I used to joke saying that they were going to call it ‘all the money’, but they changed it to ‘alimony’. It is like starting the heart of the portfolio.”
Despite the humorous tone, his message revealed a hard truth. Although he used to inhabit the top of stardom, his needs were the same as those of any other person: paying accounts, sustaining a family, guaranteeing stability. Even so, he clarified that he no longer needed to live in the luxury that had characterized his most famous stage.“Is going well with my ex? Yes. But do I need that lifestyle?”
Despite the initial enthusiasm, The Crazy Ones He failed to meet expectations. It was received with lukewarmness and harshly criticized by specialists. CBS He decided to cancel her after a single season. The frustration of a project that did not prosper joined the personal challenges he already faced.
Only three months after cancellation, On August 11, 2014, Robin Williams passed away. His death, tragic and moving, left the world of the dismay.
The recent history of Robin Williams —Retrured by Michael Gordon in Far Out– Leave a powerful message. Fame is not a shield against the insecurities or against the contingencies of life. Even those who were able to make millions laugh at everyday dilemmas: employment, debt, family ties, the sense of work.
Williams embodied the paradox of a man who, from comedy and sensitivity, knew how to talk about anguish, fragility and hope. His last step on television, although brief, symbolizes not a failure, but a sample of humility and humanity.
