We were all shocked when a 63-year old Robin Williams kills himself in 2014. How could such a brilliant and, on the surface, joyful man feel so lonesome? The upcoming documentary “Robin’s Wish” tries to answer that question and, it turns out, much like everything in life, the answer is much more complicated than any media outlet would have led you believe at the time.
I presume we won’t know what Williams’ “final wish” was until the doc, which I have now screener requested, reaches its climax. What we do already know is that Williams was battling a debilitating disease called Lewy body dementia, a hybrid of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s and that he felt like he was losing grasp of himself.
As seen in the trailer, “Robin’s Wish” is not just about the comedian’s untimely death, it also focuses on his incredible set of performances (“Dead Poets Society,” Good Will Hunting,” “Insomnia,” “Awakenings,” “One Hour Photo”). A number of family, friends, and colleagues are interviewed in the documentary, including his widow Susan Schneider Williams, Shawn Levy, John R. Montgomery, Rick Overton, and David E. Kelly
“Robin’s Wish” will arrive on VOD on September 1.