Robin Williams' daughter Zelda Williams is clearing up a rumor about the late icon. On the 10th anniversary of his passing, she said he never owned a pet monkey.
She responded to a viral post on X (formerly Twitter). The post claimed that Williams had a pet monkey. The post included an image of Williams with a monkey on his shoulder. "Robin Williams: One of the last photos of a gem of a man, with his pet monkey. Taken a few days before he committed suicide by hanging at the age of 63," the post read.
However, Williams' actual caption for the photo was, "Happy Birthday to me! A visit from one of my favorite leading ladies, Crystal." That's the monkey that starred in Night at the Museum with Williams. Zelda said her father would never be so irresponsible as to own a pet monkey.
"It's been brought to my attention some probably AI-written BS like this is going viral," she wrote. "Dad didn't own a pet monkey, NO ONE should, and if you're ever tempted to, support your local exotic animal rescues instead."
Robin Williams Never Owned A Pet Monkey
She confirmed the photo was real but everything else was fake. "Nor is that his pet monkey, which was what I was correcting first and foremost as I really dont want people thinking that's cool and trying to own one," she went on. "Basically everything else is fake except the photo, ha."
In another tweet, Zelda wrote, "And since more completely false or badly researched posts are likely to go viral on Dad's death anniversary, maybe just assume they're all BS (they usually are). Ignore the creepy robots trying to farm your clicks & do something nice for yourself instead. I sure as hell will."
It's not the first time she's come to her father's defense. Previously, she called out people who tried to recreate her father via artificial intelligence.
"I am not an impartial voice in SAG's fight against AI," she wrote on her Instagram Story in October. "Ive witnessed for YEARS how many people want to train these models to create/recreate actors who cannot consent, like Dad."
"This isn't theoretical, it is very very real," she added. "I've already heard AI used to get his 'voice' to say whatever people want and while I find it personally disturbing, the ramifications go far beyond my own feelings. Living actors deserve a chance to create characters with their choices, to voice cartoons, to put their HUMAN effort and time into the pursuit of performance."
