Tina Fey's New Show Is 'Not Why Dr. Brandt Committed Suicide': Source

"It wasn't the only thing troubling him, it was just one factor," a source tells PEOPLE

Photo: Cindy Ord/Getty; Eric Liebowitz/NBC/Netflix

Although celebrity dermatologist Dr. Fredric Brandt had been upset about comparisons to a character on Tina Fey‘s Netflix series Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, the show did not cause his apparent suicide Sunday, a source tells PEOPLE.

“He was depressed,” the source close to Brandt says. “Did the show upset him? Yes. It was a mean characterization. He was a human being, no one would like that. It was making fun of him for the way he looked and it was mean and it was bullying. It was an illness, he suffered from depression. He always seemed like the life of the party, he would sing and rap his way through the day.”

“It wasn’t the only thing troubling him, it was just one factor,” the source adds. “It definitely hurt him. He was absolutely upset, who would want that? But that was not why he committed suicide. But it didn’t help.”

In Kimmy Schmidt, released in March, Jane Krakowski’s character Jacqueline Voorhees is a frequent client of plastic surgeon Dr. Grant (pronounced “Franff”), played by Martin Short, and the script ridicules his eccentric behavior and appearance.

“He was the nicest, kindest man alive, and they poke fun of him? Why? Because he looks different,” the source tells PEOPLE. “Does Tina Fey teach her daughter to make fun of people? I don’t think so. As a mother, I wonder if that’s what she teaches her daughter. If someone looks different from you, do you make fun of them?”

Another source confirms Brandt was “definitely hurt” by the characterization, and the dermatologist had told the source, “It wasn’t nice, what they did.”

Fey, Netflix and Short have not yet returned requests for comment.

Celebrities like Kelly Ripa and Joy Behar have Tweeted about the loss of Dr. Brandt.

• Reporting by BECKY RANDEL

Celebrity Dermatologist Fredric Brandt Found Dead in His Home