If you’re a fan of Discovery Channel’s Gold Rush, chances are you are familiar with the characters who entertain you through their fabulous finds through digging and mining in every episode.
One such entertainer is Richard Ness, a member of the Parker Crew and a veteran gold miner who unexpectedly decided to take a year off during the previous season.
Apparently, Rick Ness has been suffering from depression following his mother’s death in 2018. In the second episode of the thirteenth season, it looked like Rick Ness’ facial features had changed slightly, but no related information was revealed. However, fans across social media speculate that he may have been in a fight and went hard on drugs. Thus, he decided to leave the show in 2022.
What Exactly Happened to Rick Ness From Gold Rush?
Everybody deals with loss differently, and Rick Ness, who lost his mother in 2018, has been back and forth through his depression, and it finally hit him in 2022 in the form of Seasonal Affective Disorder.
This condition is a sort of depression that begins and ends at the same time every year, perhaps due to the memories the victim has etched in their mind. In the second episode of season thirteen, Zee attempts to do a welfare check on Rick.
During the scene, both Zee and the audience are surprised to see his disheveled state, and when Zee asks Rick whether he’s okay, the latter responds, saying, “Still Standing.”
Zee further probes Rick on why he’s not mining, to which he responds that after crashing hard due to depression, he hasn’t been able to get back out there. However, the series didn’t reveal anything about his face and nose, which are different from how they used to be.
According to many speculations on Reddit and X (formerly known as Twitter), Rick may have been addicted to drugs and even engaged in some sort of brawl, leading to the change in his appearance.
Some even claim that it is just like Artie Lang’s nose, whose nose was disfigured by doing thirty years of drugs and being punched by a boxer.
Why Did Rick Ness Leave the Gold Rush? Is He Returning to the Show?
The 42-year-old veteran gold miner apparently couldn’t accept what was going on in his life. With his mother passing and eventually falling into depression, he had no choice but to take a step back.
In an interview with People Magazine, he discussed what led him to leave the series. In his words,
“I was having some mental health issues. There were a lot of things going on. The stress of this business overwhelmed me. I had to take a step back. It was not good for business, but it was good for me. And at the end of it all, I’m just fortunate I have another shot at this.”
While many hoped he would return to the series, their opinions changed after seeing a Facebook post of him in February. However, on August 31st, he informed everyone that he was back on Gold Rush for the new season.
In the fourteenth season, Ness will come back stronger by selling his mother’s house to rebuild his business from the ground up, and fans are more than excited about his recovery.
So, what do you think about Rick Ness’ return? Do you believe he can make a surprising comeback? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below.
Source: PEOPLE
