The Big Picture

• Monaghan's portrayal of Ian Gallagher on Shameless brought depth and authenticity to the character's struggles with bipolar disorder.
• His research included reading first-person accounts and talking to individuals with the disorder, showing dedication to the role.
• Through his work, Monaghan hopes to start an open conversation about mental health and break the stigma surrounding it.

For 10 seasons (aside from a little break during Season 9), Cameron Monaghan starred in the American adaptation of the beloved Paul Abbott-created British series, Shameless. Working alongside an incredible ensemble that included the likes of William H. Macy, Emmy Rossum, and Jeremy Allen White, Monaghan portrayed Ian Gallagher, one of the members of the ever-rowdy Gallagher family. Instead of going the sitcom route and portraying an “all-American family,” the Showtime series, developed by John Wells, took a hard left towards the dysfunctional. For many, Monaghan’s Ian was a breath of fresh air as his character not only represented a more accurate example of a gay teenager than other productions of the time, but Ian also lived and dealt with bipolar disorder.

Cameron Monaghan’s Deep Character Work For ‘Shameless’

During a panel at this weekend’s Calgary Expo, moderated by Collider’s Maggie Lovitt, a fan stepped up to the mic to thank Monaghan for his work on the series and asked him what kind of character research he did to portray Ian’s struggle with the mood disorder. Giving a heartfelt answer, Monaghan’s words did not disappoint, as they displayed how much thought went into creating the character and doing right by those living with bipolar disorder.

“I read a fair amount of first-person accounts of people with bipolar disorder, of people who have gone through manic depressive episodes. There was one specific memoir, which I always forget the name of, and I need to go back and pick it out, but she had written a really, really beautiful book about it. I read that, I talked to a few people that I knew who had the disorder. It was also very close to John Wells, the creator of our show who, I believe it was his sister, had bipolar disorder, and so he had a lot of his own personal attachment to it. I have a number of people in my family as well who are affected by it.

And it started an open conversation and, you know, even when working on the show, I had so many people who came up and said, ‘I live with this, this is what I deal with.’ And I always do find it very interesting to be able to talk about that. Obviously, mental health is something that’s still quite, unfortunately, stigmatized and not really talked about enough. So yeah, I really appreciate being able to do that.”

Although his time on Shameless is now a few years in the past, and he’s since moved on to other projects, Monaghan’s work as Ian Gallagher continues to reach a new audience through streaming on Netflix, where you can watch the entire series now. Stay tuned for more interviews with your favorite stars and creators as the Calgary Expo rolls on through the weekend.

Watch On Netflix