J.K. Simmons talks about his role in 'The Bachelors'

Actor J.K. Simmons, who plays a grieving widower grappling with depression in 'The Bachelors,' says his 'life experiences with grief and depression' prepared him for the role.

The actor also credits the experiences of people close to him who have also dealt with those issues in getting ready for the role.

"As far as playing the reality of it, I felt like I had enough life experience to inform what I was doing," the Academy Award winner told The Hollywood Reporter.

Simmons added that his approach to the character was twofold: trust his director and trust himself.

"I knew that Kurt [Voelker, the writer-director] had done specific research in terms of ECT [electroconvulsive therapy, which is used as part of his character's treatment for depression] and the technical details of how things may or may not be treated and how they're portrayed."

Of the film, the 'Whiplash' star says he hopes it ultimately sparks some discussion.

"I hope audiences walk away feeling that they've been entertained and amused and maybe enlightened a little bit and maybe even with a discussion about whether the path that Bill, my character, found himself directed toward was the right direction or whether he should have done something else," he says. "I hope that there's at least a little bit of a kind of debate going.