Trigger Warning: Suicide, Self-Harm, Mental Illness.
Robert Carradine, everyone’s favourite TV dad from the 2000s, has tragically passed away aged 71.
The actor, who was best known for his role as Lizzie McGuire (Hilary Duff)’s dad, Sam, sadly took his own life on Monday after a long battle with bipolar disorder.
“It is with profound sadness that we must share that our beloved father, grandfather, uncle, and brother Robert Carradine has passed away,” the Carradine family said in a statement to Deadline on Monday.
Robert Carradine’s battle with mental illness
Choosing to take his own life after years of living with bipolar disorder, Carradine’s family hope that his story will raise awareness.
“In a world that can feel so dark, Bobby was always a beacon of light to everyone around him.
“We are bereft at the loss of this beautiful soul and want to acknowledge Bobby’s valiant struggle against his nearly two-decade battle with bipolar disorder.
“We hope his journey can shine a light and encourage addressing the stigma that attaches to mental illness. At this time we ask for the privacy to grieve this unfathomable loss. With gratitude for your understanding and compassion,” their statement read.
His older brother Keith Carradine, who is also an actor, told the outlet that the family want the world to know the late actor’s mental health struggles.
“We want people to know it, and there is no shame in it,” he told Deadline. “I want to celebrate him for his struggle with it, and celebrate his beautiful soul.
“He was profoundly gifted, and we will miss him every day.
“We will take solace in how funny he could be, how wise and utterly accepting and tolerant he was. That’s who my baby brother was.”
In 2009, Carradine’s older half-brother David died from asphyxiation aged 72 in a hotel room in Thailand, something the late actor said triggered his mental illness.
Hilary Duff leads the tributes
Carradine’s on-screen daughter Hilary Duff wrote on Instagram: “There was so much warmth in the McGuire family and I always felt so cared for by my on-screen parents. I’ll be forever grateful for that. I’m deeply sad to learn Bobby was suffering. My heart aches for him, his family, and everyone who loved him.”
Jake Thomas, who played Carradine’s on-screen son, Matt, opened up about the close bond he shared with the actor during a conversation with Us Weekly while marking the show’s 25th anniversary earlier this year.
“They have always been and will continue to be like an aunt and uncle to me. Every time my parents are in town visiting, which they will be for Thanksgiving [this year], my dad goes and grabs a beer and watches a football game with Bobby down at the bar,” he told the outlet.
“They’re basically like family at this point from going through an experience like that,” he added.
“It was so influential in my life and in everybody else’s lives too. It makes us, in a way, a family that can never be separated. I like seeing everybody every once in a while, [but] everybody’s just doing so many different things, which is cool.”
Carradine’s off-screen family
Although Carradine will forever be known to us as Lizzie McGuire’s dad thanks to his appearance in 65 episodes of the popular Disney show between 2001 and 2004, the actor had a real-life family of his own off-screen.
Carradine shared a daughter, The Handmaid’s Tale star Ever Carradine, with Susan Snyder.
He later married Edith Mani and before divorcing after 25 years of marriage, they welcomed two children, Marika and Ian.
Carradine’s impressive career
Carradine started his film career off with a bang starring alongside John Wayne in The Cowboys in 1972, followed by a part in the Oscar-winning film Coming Home and a small role in Martin Scorsese’s 1973 film Mean Streets, which also starred his brother, David.
Carradine’s biggest box-office hit was the 1984 comedy Revenge of the Nerds, in which he played the lead star, Lewis Skolnick where he spent time undercover at the University of Arizona convincing real students he was an actual nerd. The film was so successful that Carradine returned for three sequels in 1987, 1992 and 1994.
If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. You can call Lifeline at 13 11 14, their service is free, confidential, and there to help.
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