Robin Williams’ Son Confesses That ‘Sharing Him With The World Was Hard’ 5 Years After His Dad’s Death

It’s been five years since legendary comedian Robin Williams passed away. Now, his son Zak Williams is speaking out about growing up with the funny man as his father, and how he has coped with his death.

Zak, 36, spoke with Good Morning Britain on Thursday, July 18, and discussed his beloved father and how he dealt with the public and private loss. “Being Robin Williams’ son was wonderful in so many ways, [but] having to share him with the world was hard at times,” he admitted.

The son of the late actor also revealed how even in his father’s darkest times, he still wanted to perform and make people laugh. “When he was having challenges and going through certain things it was heartbreaking because he still went out and wanted to share his feelings of laughter and humor with the world,” he shared. “And, while he was suffering and struggling, he still went out and performed. I admire him and loved him. Having to share him was hard.”

Although Zak says his father was a master at hiding his feelings, Robin’s true emotions sometimes bubbled to the surface at home, which left his children feeling powerless against his internal struggles. “As a family member and child, you want to do everything you can to help soothe and ease what seemed to be a really intense personal pain,” said Zak. “There were times when it felt like there was helplessness from my part, I didn’t know what I could do, or best support.”

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Being that his father was a household name, Zak accepted an outpouring of support, but he still longed for privacy. “Sharing the grieving process with the world was hard. At times it was hard to differentiate what involved private grieving, and experiencing that loss, versus public grieving and experiencing that type of community interaction and communicating. I wasn’t prepared.”

“It was challenging. But I’m very grateful for the outpouring of love and support that continued … Here we are almost five years later. I feel the massive impact and difference he made,” said Zak.

Zak is one of Robin’s three children. He was also the father to Zelda, 29, and Cody, 27. The Oscar-winning actor sadly took his own life back in 2014 at the age of 63.