Jessica Lange Opens Up About Her Battle With Depression

Jessica Lange has often played characters battling mental illness, from the institutionalized actress in 1982's Frances to an unbalanced military mom in 1994's Blue Sky (which won her a Best Actress Oscar) to her quartet of crazies on TV’s American Horror Story.

In real life, the 67-year-old star has struggled with depression. “I had really tremendous mood swings, and still do,” says Jessica. “Though my dark side is dormant right now, it continues to play a big role in whatever capacity I have to be creative.”

Jessica in January 2015.

These days, Jessica has a lot to smile about: Riding a wave of AHS acclaim, she’s back on her beloved Broadway as the matriarch in Eugene O’Neill’s Long Day’s Journey Into Night. And after her turbulent romance with playwright Sam Shepard ended in 2009, she’s “very much single and happy,” says a friend. “She spends time with her friends and her kids and grandkids, who adore her as much as she adores them.”

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Jessica’s older daughter, Shura, from her relationship with dancer-choreographer Mikhail Baryshnikov, has two girls of her own now. “They come to visit Jessica in NYC often, and she lives for those days,” says an insider. “She loves reading to them.”

To read the full story on Jessica, pick up the new issue of Closer Weekly, on newsstands now!