The Suicide of Jonathan Brandis

On November 11, 2003 actor Jonathan Brandis took his life at 27 years old.  It was a shock to his friends and family as well as fans from all over the world.  The thing about Jonathan Brandis is that his fans never stop thinking about him and searching for some way to reconcile his death.  Jonathan hanged himself in his home and died the next day at Cedars Sinai Medical Center. Jonathan’s father, Greg Brandis, was quoted in People magazine. He said, “I talk to him and it makes me smile. I get the feeling he’s looking down at me.”  Jonathan Brandis is one person who touched fans throughout his life and genuine interest in him has never gone away.

Jonathan started acting at a very young age. He was in commercials and various t.v. shows (L.A. Law, Who’s the Boss, Full House). He acted in The Neverending Story, Ladybugs with Rodney Dangerfield, in Seaquest with Roy Scheider, and in Stephen King’s IT (t.v. mini-series). Teen fan magazine Tiger Beat voted him the No. 1 dreamboat, and he was a teen idol.  He received an enormous amount of fan mail and gifts as well.

Some friends say Jonathan’s career was slowing and that he was depressed about not getting parts.  Others say he wasn’t concerned about his career. His friends say he was drinking a lot.  Soleil Moon Frye recently put out a documentary called Kid 90 (on Hulu).  She saved clips from her childhood in the entertainment industry.  Her close friend Jonathan Brandis was in the film and she recalls their friendship.  Soleil saved voicemails and played Jonathan’s messages left on her voicemail.  She also showed videos of him. 

Many friends felt guilt for not having picked up on the desperation of Jonathan’s depression or wished they had intervened.  Jonathan’s father said that Jonathan was probably bipolar. He said that when he looks back, in his 20s he showed signs of manic depression.

Guilt from friends and family is understandable.  But friends and family are not trained in mental health.  Friends of the same age group have many issues of their own and are often not equipped to know the extent to which suicide is imminent. Family members may see signs from loved ones and not see what is coming next.

Since Jonathan’s death in 2003, depression has been studied much more and mental health issues are more out in the open.  Many young people express suicidal thoughts. Sometimes as young people get older they are able to handle stress and everyday life better.  Some young people turn to drugs and alcohol to numb the pain and die accidentally.

Cambridge University Press published an article, “Understanding the Suicidal Brain.” C. Van Heeringen and Marušic write:

 It has thus become clear that three characteristics differentiate people with depression who are suicidal from people with depression who are not. These characteristics include:

1. (a) a sensitivity to particular life events reflecting signals of defeat, based on attentional biases (‘perceptual popout’) leading to involuntary hypersensitivity to stimuli signaling ‘loser’ status;
2. (b) the sense of being trapped, which is related to an insufficient capacity to solve problems, commonly of an interpersonal or social nature;
3. (c) the absence of rescue factors, mediated by deficient prospective cognitive processes and leading to feelings of hopelessness.

The National Alliance on Mental Illness, an advocacy group, suggests that the majority of people who commit suicide suffer from depression or some other diagnosed mental illness. But not all depressed people commit suicide.  There is so much more to learn on the subject.  While we may never fully understand what tips someone over the edge, current research suggests that biology may hold at least some answers.

“Something is happening in the brain of these people,” says Fabrice Jollant, a psychiatrist at McGill University in Montreal. “It’s not doing its job properly.”
Jollant cautions that the issue is far more complex. “It’s not all about serotonin,” he says. “Yes, the system is implicated with suicide, but there are other factors at play.” Antidepressants — which boost serotonin levels in the brain — don’t work for everyone, for example, and some researchers even doubt their benefits for the severely depressed.

Fabrice Jollant, MD, Ph.D., is an adjunct professor in the Department of Psychiatry at McGill University and full professor of psychiatry at Université de Paris (Paris-Descartes) and at Sainte-Anne Hospital (GHU Paris Psychiatrie et Neurosciences), Paris, France. He is also part of the McGill Group for Suicide Studies (MGSS) led by Pr. G. Turecki (https://mgss.ca/fabrice-jollant).

Fabrice’s main research axis is the study of suicidal behavior, including 1) neurocognition (with a specific focus on decision-making), and more recently 2) innovative treatments of the suicidal crisis, 3) epidemiology, and 4) research on suicide training. He is also involved in several training programs on this theme (including the use of simulation). 

If you or someone you know is suicidal, visit suicidepreventionlifeline.org or call:

 (800) 273-8255 

The Lifeline provides 24/7, free and confidential support for people in distress, prevention and crisis resources for you or your loved ones, and best practices for professionals.