From Superman Fame to Homelessness: The Untold Story of Margot Kidder's Final Struggles

For a lot of people, Christopher Reeve is Superman and Margot Kidder is Lois Lane, full stop. She played the sharp, no-nonsense Daily Planet reporter like she actually had a deadline to hit. Off screen, though, Kidder’s life got very hard, very fast, and it stayed complicated right up to the end. It’s a tough story, but it’s also one that helped a lot of people talk about mental health in the open.

From Lois Lane to real-life turbulence

Kidder’s health problems started surfacing in the late 80s. In 1988, she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. At the time, she didn’t want to discuss it publicly or go through treatment, a choice that would loom over the next decade of her life.

Then came the crash. In 1990, while working on the pilot for a proposed series called Nancy Drew and Daughter, she was in a serious car accident. The impact injured her spine and left her partially paralyzed for a period. She couldn’t work for two years and, by her own accounting, ended up in about $800,000 of debt. It was brutal.

1996: when everything unraveled in public

In 1996, Kidder hit the most visible crisis point of her illness. A computer virus trashed the files for her autobiography, and she spiraled into a manic episode that played out in the press in a way no one would want.

It was described at the time as the 'most public freak-out in history.'

She was eventually found in someone’s backyard in a distressed state, missing teeth, and saying she had been attacked. Police took her to a hospital, where she received psychiatric care. Later, she spoke openly about the manic episodes, including blowing large sums of money and not remembering what she bought. During the period she was missing in Los Angeles, she said she slept in cardboard boxes on the street.

How it ended, and what she changed

On May 13, 2018, Kidder died. Her manager initially described it as peaceful. Authorities later ruled it a suicide by drug overdose. It’s a heartbreaking end to a life that gave a lot of joy to audiences and, eventually, a lot of clarity to people dealing with mental health issues.

In the years after her 1996 crisis, Kidder talked publicly and repeatedly about her diagnosis and what she learned getting through it. Her daughter, Maggie McGuane, has said that being open about the reality of those struggles was important to Kidder if it meant more people would understand what mental illness looks like and feel less alone.

Small but important note: if you’ve seen a line elsewhere claiming her Superman co-star inspired people with alopecia, that seems like a mix-up. Reeve became a major advocate for people living with paralysis after his accident. Different condition, same big-hearted push to help others.

Why this still matters to movie fans

The original Superman films from the late 70s and early 80s set the template for modern superhero movies. We take a lot of that DNA for granted now, but Kidder’s Lois is a huge part of why those movies still feel alive: she’s smart, impatient with nonsense, and has zero time for a guy who thinks he’s charming just because he can bend steel.

The films, the numbers, where to watch

If you want to revisit Kidder’s run as Lois, they’re available on HBO Max (US). Here’s the quick breakdown:

• Superman: The Movie (1978) - Director: Richard Donner - Rotten Tomatoes: 88% critics | 86% audience - Box office: $300 million
• Superman II (1980) - Director: Richard Lester - Rotten Tomatoes: 88% critics | 76% audience - Box office: $216 million
• Superman III (1983) - Director: Richard Lester - Rotten Tomatoes: 31% critics | 23% audience - Box office: $80.2 million
• Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987) - Director: Sidney J. Furie - Rotten Tomatoes: 16% critics | 16% audience - Box office: $30.2 million

However you come to these movies, Kidder’s legacy is more than Lois. She helped make superhero cinema feel human. And by talking frankly about her own mental health, she helped make those conversations feel human too.