'The Morning Show' star Mark Duplass opens up about battle with depression
Mark Duplass may be best known for playing Chip Black -- the fiercely loyal and often tightly wound executive producer on Apple TV+'s "The Morning Show" -- but offscreen, he's stepping into a different kind of spotlight as an advocate for mental health.
The 48-year-old actor, writer and producer recently opened up about his decadeslong struggle with depression and anxiety, which he first addressed publicly in a candid Instagram post in October 2023.
Alongside a smiling photo of himself, Duplass wrote at the time, "I have been struggling with anxiety and depression for most of my life…When I see pictures of myself like this one, I can see the fear and sadness behind the smile."
In an interview with ABC News' Whit Johnson, which aired on "Good Morning America" Wednesday, Duplass said he didn't expect much from the post.
"It's funny, I didn't really see it as something super personal," he recalled. "And I thought, you know, I'll just share this feeling I had. And it was really the response that people had, particularly a lot of men, that made me realize [that] men's mental health in particular might not [have] been as destigmatized as I thought it was."
Duplass said his mental health challenges began in his teens, when he experienced panic attacks and tried to muscle through them alone. By his late 20s, he said it reached a breaking point.
"I had no skills with which to deal with it," he said. "And I really did, I thought this might be it for me. I might never be normal again."
Duplass said therapy and medication became pillars of his recovery, but he said managing his mental health involves more than just clinical treatment.
"I learned that I got to get out of bed in the morning," he explained. "I need to make sure I'm sleeping eight to nine hours a night. I need to make sure I'm getting really good exercise. I need to make sure I'm eating healthy, and for me, and this isn't the same for everyone, I needed to demystify the medication."
When asked whether he worried that opening up about his mental health journey could affect his career, Duplass admitted the thought crossed his mind.
"I thought about it, you know. The last thing I would want is someone who's considering hiring me for a job to think, like, 'Oh man, what happens if he shows up and he's really depressed or anxious one day?'" he said. "I just want to say very clearly, like there is no shame in this. I was so scared to tell people what I was dealing with, and once I did, it deepened all of my relationships and helped my professional career, and that's something I didn't anticipate."
Ironically, Duplass said that playing Chip -- a character often pushed to his limits -- feels like portraying a version of himself without the mental health tools on which he now relies.
"Playing Chip on 'The Morning Show' is pure fun for me, because the good news is he's way more stressed out than I am," he said. "Chip is basically me without my mental health systems and the medication and what that would feel like."
For anyone who is currently struggling with mental health issues, Duplass shared his message of hope, saying, "It's gonna be OK."
"In season 2, I was having some mental health issues, and I said, 'Look, I'm struggling with a little bit of this.' And they were so wonderful and so accommodating," he said, adding, "You're probably feeling like there's no way I'm ever going to be normal again. My life is ruined, but that fog is a lie. It's not real. And you will rise above the fog, and it will lift."
If you are struggling with thoughts of suicide or worried about a friend or loved one, call the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988 for free, confidential emotional support 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
