Anne Heche's ex-boyfriend praises viral post that cast Heche in a compassionate light

James Tupper is pushing back against the idea that his late ex-girlfriend Anne Heche was "crazy" after one of his former co-stars spoke up in Heche's defense.

On Friday, actor Emily Bergl wrote an impassioned Instagram post that went viral for shooting down the rampant assumption that Heche was mentally unstable.

Bergl, who co-starred alongside Heche and Tupper in the TV series "Men in Trees," said Heche was not only a genius but "one of the most astoundingly focused and prepared actors" she had ever worked with.

'“You worked with crazy Anne Heche? 'So how crazy was she?'" Bergl wrote. "I worked with Anne Heche for two years on the TV show Men in Trees, and this line of questioning was usually the first out of people’s mouths. She elicited more curiosity than any other famous person I’ve ever worked with. I’d like to give you the answers to the questions I most received about Anne, answers that I gave many, many times.

"Anne was not only a genius, but one of the most astoundingly focused and prepared actors I’ve ever worked with," Bergl continued. "I don’t think I ever saw her miss her mark. I imagine she may have called for her line once or twice but I can’t recall her ever needing it. I asked her what her secret was, and she told me her first job was playing twins on Another World, so she had to memorize up to seventy pages of dialogue a day."

Bergl, who played Annie O'Donnell in "Men in Trees," outlined Heche's "super human" work ethic, noting how she remained present and upbeat despite slamming incredibly long days on a routine basis.

"The only joke I did make about Anne was that it’s likely she didn’t have a psychotic break, but really was an alien, because her strength seemed super human," Bergl wrote. "She would work for twelve hours, invite everyone to the bar, drink a couple of doubles, and be back at work at four AM. As I would roll in feeling barely human, she would walk into the makeup trailer, always on time, her smiling face luminous without a lick of makeup. Scene after scene, her work would be flawless, and yet always remained spontaneous."

Plenty of celebrities jumped in the comments to applaud her for her compassionate take on Heche, including Rosie O'Donnell and Amanda Seyfried. Tupper, who dated Heche from 2007 to 2018 after meeting during "Men in Trees," co-signed Bergl's words as well.

"Oh god thank you for writing this," the actor wrote. "Is all completely accurate and true. love you e."

Heche seemed to be aware of her reputation, so much so that she titled her 2001 memoir "Call Me Crazy." The actor died Friday, a week after crashing her car into a Mar Vista home, causing it to catch fire. She sustained serious burns along with brain damage and was taken off life support at age 53.

Soon after, the Los Angeles Police Department said there will be no further investigation into the crash after police determined Heche had been under the influence of narcotics.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.