Robin Williams' Son Zak I've Learned I'm Not Broken

After his famous father’s death in 2014, Zak struggled with addiction and depression. Now he hopes to inspire others by sharing his story

Zak Williams had a very important decision on his mind leading up to Halloween: what his 17-month-old son Mickey should be. “We were thinking of doing The Wizard of Oz, but I wasn’t sure if Mickey should be the Lion or the Scarecrow,” says the oldest son of the late Robin Williams, laughing.

The newlywed’s fun-filled family life at home in LA with his wife, Olivia, and their boisterous toddler is something he always dreamed of – but just a few years ago, he didn’t think it could be possible. After his father died by suicide in 2014, Zak, 37, whose mother is Robin’s first wife, Valerie Velardi, fell into a deep depression.

“I was traumatised,” he says. He turned to alcohol to mask his grief – but “it wasn’t a life that was worth living”, he says. “Something had to give.” Zak attended recovery group meetings and, with the help of therapy, healthy eating, exercise and meditation, began to heal – and decided to speak out in the hope of helping others.

For Zak, who had battled anxiety and depressive episodes since early childhood, witnessing his father’s final year was especially painful.

The legendary comedian, who faced addiction and depression throughout his life, began experiencing crippling anxiety, delusions and impaired movement. Unknown to everyone, including his wife, Susan, and two other children Zelda, 31, and Cody, 28, Robin was suffering from diffuse Lewy body dementia, a brain disorder that causes those symptoms. (Doctors were only able to pinpoint the diagnosis after an autopsy.)