On August 11, 2014, multi-talented actor Robin Williams passed away at 63, leaving his family and the world heartbroken as they struggled with his death’s circumstances. The actor’s death was ruled as a suicide—a belt was discovered around his neck and some self-inflicted cuts on his left wrist, confirming the suspicion.
It’s been almost a decade since Robin’s death, and some people who had a close relationship with Robin are coming out to share that behind his humor and on-screen brilliance, he battled with severe drug addiction.
Allan Stephan, Robin Williams’ friend, says the late comedian was highly dependent on drugs
During an appearance on an episode of Vice TV’s Dark Side of Comedy, one of Williams’ close friends, Allan Stephan, candidly shared details of the comedian’s deeply rooted cocaine addiction. Stephan also elaborated on the profound impact that the substance had on his behavior, significantly how it altered the renowned comedian’s actions and decisions.
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“He said, ‘Know anyone with any blow? I have to go on, and I can’t go on without any blow,'” the actor admitted. “And I sat down, and I said, ‘I’m going to help you.’ He said, ‘Do you have blow on you?’ I said, ‘No, are you out of your f—— mind? You’re Robin Williams.’ And after that, I don’t think he would get high when he had it before.”
Mike Binder and Director Howard Storm also commented on his drug addiction
Another of Williams’ acquaintances, Mike Binder, reminisced about his high drug dependence. He also cited a specific incident that involved both of them. “One night, we went to a place called Flippers Discotheque in Hollywood, and I had like a gram of coke, and Williams said, “Oh, let me take that’ and “Do you mind if I hit that in the bathroom?” he shared. “He came back and it was empty. It was like, woah. It was like 8:15 p.m. at night. I was like, ‘Robin, you did the whole gram?’ He was like, ‘It was an accident, I’m sorry.’ With drugs, he was a monster.”
In Dave Itzkoff’s biography, Robin, Director Howard Storm, who had collaborated with the late actor on the sitcom Mork & Mindy, shed light on Williams’ unrestrained dependence on drugs, and its discernible impact on his performance during production. “He hadn’t slept all night. He was snorting coke, and if you snort coke, in order to come down, you drink booze,” he detailed. “He was out all night and screwing everybody in town.”