Blue’s Clues original host Steve Burns struggled with ‘severe clinical depression’ during filming

With his highly-anticipated return to Blues Clues with the new Paramount Plus movie Blue’s Big City Adventures, Steve Burns is opening up about his depression on the original series.

Burns, 49, was plucked from obscurity to host the beloved Nickelodeon series, which debuted in 1996, before he left after 100 episodes in 2001.

The actor opened up about how depressed he really was while filming the show, in a new interview with Variety. 

Opening up: With his highly-anticipated return to Blues Clues with the new Paramount Plus movie Blue’s Big City Adventures, Steve Burns is opening up about his depression on the original series

Host: Burns, 49, was plucked from obscurity to host the beloved Nickelodeon series, which debuted in 1996, before he left after 100 episodes in 2001

Burns landed the gig when he was just 22, having moved to New York City to try to be a ‘serious’ actor.

‘But I gotta say, even at the first audition, there was a thing that I loved: this idea of talking to the camera, like a Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton thing,’ he said. 

‘I thought the interactivity was really breakthrough. I used to call it ‘The Rocky Horror Children’s Show.’ But yeah, the persona was not what any 22-year-old dude would have wanted,’ Burns admitted.

Gig: Burns landed the gig when he was just 22, having moved to New York City to try to be a ‘serious’ actor

Idea: ‘But I gotta say, even at the first audition, there was a thing that I loved: this idea of talking to the camera, like a Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton thing,’ he said

His departure in 2001 shocked fans, and while one reason was, at 29, he was starting to lose his hair and didn’t want to wear a wig, another was, simply, ‘I wasn’t going to be boyish anymore.’

‘I didn’t know it yet, but I was the happiest depressed person in North America. I was struggling with severe clinical depression the whole time I was on that show,’ he said. 

‘It was my job to be utterly and completely full of joy and wonder at all times, and that became impossible,’ Burns admitted. 

Departure: His departure in 2001 shocked fans, and while one reason was, at 29, he was starting to lose his hair and didn’t want to wear a wig, another was, simply, ‘I wasn’t going to be boyish anymore’

Depressed: ‘I didn’t know it yet, but I was the happiest depressed person in North America. I was struggling with severe clinical depression the whole time I was on that show,’ he said

READ RELATED: Astrophysics photographer shares out-of-this-world Milky Way photos

‘I was always able to dig and find something that felt authentic to me that was good enough to be on the show, but after years and years of going to the well without replenishing it, there was a cost,’ he said.

‘My strategy had been: “Hey, you got a great thing going, so just fight it!” Turns out, you don’t fight depression; you collect it,’ he said.

‘After I left Blue’s Clues, there was a long period of healing. It wasn’t until the death of my father that I really started to take things seriously, and my life became so much more manageable,’ Burns said.

Healing: ‘After I left Blue’s Clues, there was a long period of healing. It wasn’t until the death of my father that I really started to take things seriously, and my life became so much more manageable,’ Burns said

Throughout the years, Burns’ disappearance led to a slew of rumors about his whereabouts, including several about his supposed death.

‘I was under the working assumption that most of y’all thought I was dead. That rumor was so persistent and so indelible that I assumed it was a cultural preference. I eventually just took the hint. I kept my head down and left public life,’ Burns said.

Burns returned in character in a special video posted on Nickelodeon’s Twitter, celebrating the 25th Anniversary of Blue’s Clues.

Steve returns: Burns returned in character in a special video posted on Nickelodeon’s Twitter, celebrating the 25th Anniversary of Blue’s Clues

‘You remember how when we were younger, we used to run around and hang out with Blue … and then I left and we didn’t see each other for a really long time? Can we just talk about that? Because I realize that was kind of abrupt,’ Burns says in the video.

He would go on to discuss various hardships of adult life, before concluding, ‘I just wanted to say, I never forgot you. Ever.’

The post was retweeted 800K times and liked nearly 2 million times, with many commenting it offered the kind of ‘closure’ they needed with the character they all grew up with.

Never: He would go on to discuss various hardships of adult life, before concluding, ‘I just wanted to say, I never forgot you. Ever’

‘Everyone wants to feel seen and heard. I think it punched through because it was about respectful, active listening — a more direct conversation than you’re used to seeing on your screen,’ Burns said.

Burns had been writing and producing on the revival series Blues Clues & You and occasionally guest starring, though many who grew up on the original series were unaware until that 2021 video.

Now he’ll make his full-fledged return to the franchise in Blue’s Big City Adventure, where he reunites with Donovan Patton, who plays Steve’s younger brother Joe, and the Blues Clues & You host Joshua Dela Cruz, debuting on Paramount Plus November 18.

Writing: Burns had been writing and producing on the revival series Blues Clues & You and occasionally guest starring, though many who grew up on the original series were unaware until that 2021 video

Return: Now he’ll make his full-fledged return to the franchise in Blue’s Big City Adventure, where he reunites with Donovan Patton, who plays Steve’s younger brother Joe, and the Blues Clues & You host Joshua Dela Cruz, debuting on Paramount Plus November 18