HEALTHRobin Williams' Final Days Marked by Increasingly 'Erratic' Behavior Linked to Parkinson's Misdiagnosis, Source Says
Before his 2014 passing, Robin Williams exhibited increasingly strange behavior while doctors misdiagnosed his underlying Lewy body dementia as Parkinson's.
Oct. 11 2026, Published 11:14 a.m. ET
Robin Williams experienced increasingly troubling changes in his behavior during the final months of his life, as doctors struggled to identify the neurological condition affecting him.
"At first, he was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease," a longtime friend recalled in an interview. "But Robin's behavior began to become more and more erratic and bizarre."
The account revisited the comedian's final months before his death in August 2014 at age 63.
Williams' Parkinson's Diagnosis Did Not Explain Everything
Susan Schneider observed that Parkinson's failed to explain her husband's paranoia.
Williams received a Parkinson's disease diagnosis in 2014 after experiencing stiffness, tremors and memory problems. An examination after his death revealed that he had Lewy body dementia. The neurological disease can affect thinking, movement and memory.
The Good Will Hunting star was also dealing with anxiety and insomnia. He reportedly believed something else was wrong, even after receiving his diagnosis.
His wife, Susan Schneider, had noticed changes in his behavior months earlier. In an interview, she remarked, "Parkinson's didn't really explain the paranoia, the delusional looping, the mild depression and the anxiety."
The couple arranged for him to undergo an evaluation at a specialist neurocognitive center. He died just one week before the scheduled appointment.
Pam Dawber Noticed a Change in the Comedian
Pam Dawber noticed her former costar had lost his famous spark, privately sharing concerns about his subdued behavior.
Pam Dawber, Williams' Mork & Mindy costar, also remembered a distinct shift in her longtime colleague's energy during their final years together.
"I would come home and say to my husband, 'Something is wrong. He's flat. He's lost the spark, I don't know what it is,'" Dawber said in Dave Itzkoff's 2018 biography, Robin.
Williams had built a career on his quick wit and energetic screen presence. Now those close to him were seeing a different side as that signature vitality began to slip away.
A Makeup Artist Recalled His Distress on Set
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Makeup artist Cheri Minns remembered the comedian sobbing daily on set.
Cheri Minns, a makeup artist who worked with the Oscar winner on Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb, described how difficult filming became for him.
"He was sobbing in my arms at the end of every day. It was horrible," Minns disclosed in Itzkoff's biography.
At some point, Minns suggested that Williams return to stand-up comedy.
"He just cried and said, 'I can't, Cheri ... I don't know how anymore ... I don't know how to be funny,'" she revealed.
His Son Described the Impact of the Misdiagnosis
Zak Williams shared that his father endured severe physical discomfort and mental strain caused by mismatched Parkinson's medications.
Williams' son Zak Williams discussed his father's experience during an appearance on Max Lugavere's podcast "The Genius Life."
"What he was going through didn't match one-to-one [with] many Parkinson's patients' experiences. So, I think that was hard for him," Zak explained.
He also recalled his father's difficulties with concentration and physical discomfort. "There was just more anxiety and depression and just things he was experiencing and talking to me about that made me realize that he was — it was very uncomfortable," he said.
Zak added that the medications prescribed after the diagnosis were "really hard on the mind and the body."
