Robin Williams is finally returning to television full time with CBS’ The Crazy Ones, in which he plays an ad executive and Sarah Michelle Gellar’s father. Williams explained that the reason why he took the job was to pay the bills.
“The idea of having a steady job is appealing,” the Oscar winner told Parade in the magazine’s new issue.
“I have two [other] choices: go on the road doing stand-up, or do small, independent movies working almost for scale [minimum union pay],” he explained. “The movies are good, but a lot of times they don’t even have distribution. There are bills to pay. My life has downsized, in a good way. I’m selling the ranch up in Napa. I just can’t afford it anymore.”
People notes that he was asked if he lost all his money thanks to his divorces from Valerie Velardi (in 1988) and Marcia Garces (in 2008). Williams is currently married to graphic designer Susan Schneider.
“Well, not all. Lost enough. Divorce is expensive. I used to joke they were going to call it 'all the money,' but they changed it to 'alimony.' It's ripping your heart out through your wallet,” he told Parade. “Are things good with my exes? Yes. But do I need that lifestyle? No.”
Williams also said that he loved working with Gellar. “It’s fun,” he said about returnign to TV. “I’m having such a blast doing it with Sarah. She’s a sweet woman. And the idea of a father-daughter relationship—since I have a daughter, I’ve done the research on that.”
The Crazy Ones will premiere on Thursday, Sept. 26.
image: CBS