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Glenn Close says Fatal Attraction stereotyped people living with mental illness

Glenn Close in Fatal Attraction. Photo courtesy of The Telegraph.

Glenn Close in Fatal Attraction. Photo courtesy of The Telegraph.

Actress Glenn Close said she would not have played the part of Alex Forrest in the iconic 1987 film “Fatal Attraction” in the same way had she had known more about mental illness, according to this article in The Telegraph.

Close took part in a White House submit on mental illness that National Association of Social Workers CEO Dr. Angelo McClain, LICSW, attended (read more on NASW’s Social Work Blog). President Obama said he hopes the summit will encourage more people to seek treatment for mental illness, thisĀ USA Today article said.

In “Fatal Attraction” Close portrayed a publishing executive who becomes obsessed with married businessman Dan Gallagher (actor Michael Douglas) after a brief affair. Alex ends up stalking Gallagher and his wife and daughter, kidnapping his daughter, and injuring herself to frame him for domestic abuse.

Then there was the disturbing scene featuring the family’s pet rabbit.

Close said she is sorry that violent role stereotyped people who live with mental illness.

“Most people with mental illness are not violent,” she said. “And most people who commit violent crimes do not have a diagnosed mental illness. That is wrong, and it’s proven wrong and it is immoral to keep that perpetrated.”

Social workers here clients over depression and other mental illnesses. To learn more visit the National Association of Social Workers’ “Help Starts Here” Mind and Spirit website.

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