This Country star Paul Chahidi has shone a light on the under-discussed mental health struggles faced by actors across the industry, with many feeling to ashamed to speak out.
The actor, who is best known for playing Reverend Francis Seaton in the BBC sitcom as well as roles in The Night Manager, The Death of Stalin and Good Omens, warned that many within the arts are left in a “vulnerable state” by job uncertainty – and that even he fears that he may “never work again as an actor”.
In March, the Actors’ Trust published a study which found that 77 per cent of actors reported feeling lonely in the last year while 27 per cent have had thoughts that they would be better off dead, or thoughts of self-harm – almost four times the national average. Over three-quarters of actors have experienced a problem with their mental health in the last three years, compared to 20 per cent of UK adults reporting the same.
Chahidi, who serves as an ambassador for the charity, said that the high unemployment rate within the industry is partly to blame – however, it’s compounded by the isolation felt by actors who often audition from home and rarely hear back from prospective employers.
“These auditions used to be in person until Covid came along and now they’re all pretty much virtual,” he told The Independent. “It’s a lovely occurrence when someone asks you to come in and meet in person. With theatre you still will, but with television and film it’s nearly all self-tapes.
“This adds to the sense of isolation, and added to that is that you often don’t get an answer back – you often will not hear if it’s a ‘No’. The first time you’ll hear anything about it quite often can be just reading about who’s been cast and you’ll be left in limbo.”
Chahidi continued: “That leaves you in a very vulnerable state. It’s this strange dichotomy – you have to make yourself vulnerable and emotionally available to explore a character when you’re auditioning. You have to do that over and over again and you’d be lucky if you get one in 10 of the jobs you go up for. As soon as you finish, you have to go to the opposite extreme or not allowing yourself to care too much and put on an invisible suit of armour. That is not a healthy way to exit. Actors have to be resilient but it comes at a huge cost.”
While Chahidi recently appeared in projects such as The Night Manager, Wicked Little Letters, Ludwig and Good Omens, he admitted that even he can have “big gaps” in his CV.
“What you have to do mentally to yourself – being vulnerable and then going to the other extreme of being invulnerable – that never goes away,” he said.
“It doesn’t matter whether you’re at the beginning, middle or really far on in your career, you’ll have mental health crises. You could never work again as an actor. I’ve seen actors fall off the edge financially and mentally.
“It can suddenly dry up. It happened to loads of actors I know during Covid and post-Covid. It’s never really recovered for them and it’s nothing to do with their abilities. It’s just the way the marketplace has changed in terms of the job market within our industry.”
Chahidi is urging struggling actors to ask the Actors’ Trust for help, with the charity launching a new mental healthy service that offers free therapy sessions.
“There’s a feeling often that we will be judged really harshly if we complain – and it’s seen as complaining rather than reaching out for help. We have to stamp out that stigma,” he said.
“On a personal level, I have suffered from poor mental health at times as an actor, particularly in periods of unemployment and I have friends who have suffered and continue to suffer – both as stage managers and actors so I think it’s really important.”
Despite the increasing number of issues faced by actors today, Chahidi said they wouldn’t have stopped him from going into the business had he known – but he wishes that support had been available earlier in his career.
“I entered the profession thinking the cards were really stacked against me anyway – I’m a half Iranian, prematurely balding, round-faced, double-chinned man,” he laughed. “I went in with the lowest possible expectations, which helped, actually, in a funny way.
“But I wish I’d had something like the Actors’ Trust to help me through and the resources they’re providing because it would give another layer of support and a place to go when the times are incredibly tough.”
He added that both the industry and the government should be looking to enforce “stricter codes of conduct” around helping people with metal health needs.
“We have to keep applying pressure because unless you apply pressure, nothing ever gets done,” he said.
You can find more information on the Actors’ Trust here.
If you are experiencing feelings of distress, or are struggling to cope, you can speak to the Samaritans, in confidence, on 116 123 (UK and ROI), email jo@samaritans.org, or visit the Samaritans website to find details of your nearest branch.
If you are based in the USA, and you or someone you know needs mental health assistance right now, call the National Suicide Prevention Helpline on 1-800-273-TALK (8255). This is a free, confidential crisis hotline that is available to everyone 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
If you are in another country, you can go to www.befrienders.org to find a helpline near you.
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