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A Behind-The-Scenes Look At How The Iconic Pigtail Scene In "Matilda" Was Filmed Is Going Mega Viral, And You Have GOT To See It

Krista Torres
·3-min read

We all know the classic '90s movie Matilda, starring Danny DeVito and Mara Wilson. The movie was co-produced and directed by Danny DeVito himself, and it is based on the 1988 Roald Dahl novel Matilda.

A man in a straw hat and a woman in a floral dress stand with a young girl, possibly a scene from a movie set
A man in a straw hat and a woman in a floral dress stand with a young girl, possibly a scene from a movie set

Fun fact: Danny's wife in real life, Rhea Perlman, played his wife Mrs. Wormwood in the movie.

The movie has a lot of standout moments, like when Miss Trunchbull forces poor Bruce to eat a giant chocolate cake in one sitting.

TriStar Pictures

Another highly-remembered scene is when Miss Trunchbull confronts little Amanda Thripp.

A scene from the movie "Matilda" with a strict woman confronting a young girl in a pink dress outside a school building
A scene from the movie "Matilda" with a strict woman confronting a young girl in a pink dress outside a school building

After Miss Trunchbull questions her pigtails, Amanda explains that her "mommy thinks they're cute," but Trunchbull insists she must chop them off. Amanda then gets swung around by her pigtails for responding with "but."

A person spins a child around by the arms in front of a group of kids outside a building
A person spins a child around by the arms in front of a group of kids outside a building

After spinning around several times, Trunchbull releases Amanda into the air. The students call this move the "hammer throw."

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TriStar Pictures

Thankfully, Amanda lands safely in a field of flowers.

TriStar Pictures

And millions of people are just now discovering a very neat BTS look at how that scene was filmed in a recently resurfaced Danny DeVito interview. "We had a crane. A very, very big crane. It came up and went down," he explains.

A person speaking with animated gestures, wearing a collared shirt, with a blue caption box indicating their name and profession as a director
A person speaking with animated gestures, wearing a collared shirt, with a blue caption box indicating their name and profession as a director

He went on to share that Jacqueline Steiger — who played Amanda Thripp — was put in a harness, and she loved it.

Child actor in costume is held by two adults during a film set scene, appearing to simulate flying
Child actor in costume is held by two adults during a film set scene, appearing to simulate flying

"But the thing about Jacqueline that I remember really well is that she read constantly. She read as much as Matilda. She read a lot of books," said Danny. And you can see in the BTS clip her reading in between takes!

TriStar Pictures / wishfulwhispers88 / youtube.com

When they start the spin, the cameraman can be heard repeating, "That looks sensational." You can then hear someone else on set say, "You okay Jacqueline?" Overall, the set seemed like a very safe place, and everyone wanted to make sure Jacqueline was comfortable.

Person playfully twirling a child outdoors in front of a large stone building, while a camera crew films the scene
Person playfully twirling a child outdoors in front of a large stone building, while a camera crew films the scene

In another part, Jacqueline can be seen telling Mara, "If I get dizzy, do you know what the code word is? JELLYBEANS!" Mara looks up at her in the harness, amazed, asking, "Are you gonna shout down, 'Jellybeans!!!???'"

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TriStar Pictures / wishfulwhispers88 / youtube.com

In another take, Pam Ferris — the woman who played Miss Trunchbull — freaks out when the braids suddenly pop off Jaqueline's head, and she flies out of the shot.

Scene from a film with a man in a military-style outfit leading a group of children standing in rows outdoors
Scene from a film with a man in a military-style outfit leading a group of children standing in rows outdoors

"We had special braids made so that we could swing her around in a wide shot. They popped out, and we had to glue them back on," Danny explained.

A film scene being shot with a young girl jumping rope in front of a large, old building with a group of children standing in the background
A film scene being shot with a young girl jumping rope in front of a large, old building with a group of children standing in the background

The whole crew was there to help catch Jacqueline any time she swung around on the harness.

A behind-the-scenes shot of the film "Matilda" shows a character flying through the air while onlookers watch
A behind-the-scenes shot of the film "Matilda" shows a character flying through the air while onlookers watch

At the end, Danny excitedly tells Jacqueline, "You were flyin' kiddo! I can't believe it!" He then kisses her on the cheek and they have the sweetest interaction, both happy her safe word "jellybeans" never had to be said.

Child with glasses smiling and looking up, surrounded by adults. She seems joyful in the casual outdoor setting
Child with glasses smiling and looking up, surrounded by adults. She seems joyful in the casual outdoor setting

The first thing that people were in disbelief about was the fact that there was no stunt double:

Comment by user "brujababe6" saying "Not this little girl doing her own stunts lmao," with 190,115 likes
Comment by user "brujababe6" saying "Not this little girl doing her own stunts lmao," with 190,115 likes

Jacqueline did it herself:

Instagram comment praising a baby for doing stunts, calling her "A QUEEN!" with 31,047 likes
Instagram comment praising a baby for doing stunts, calling her "A QUEEN!" with 31,047 likes

And lots of people had assumed it wasn't really her:

Comment screenshot: "All these years I thought they used a doll but really that baby was really doing stunts" with laughing emoji
Comment screenshot: "All these years I thought they used a doll but really that baby was really doing stunts" with laughing emoji

People were really surprised to find out just how safe this set was, especially when you think about all the horror stories kid actors have told about working in the '90s:

Social media comment expressing happiness about someone being well taken care of during a scene, contrasting recent negative documentaries
Social media comment expressing happiness about someone being well taken care of during a scene, contrasting recent negative documentaries

It was clear that everyone working on the film was focused on making sure Jacqueline was out of harm's way:

Comment praising Danny DeVito for ensuring safety and comfort on a film set, especially for children. 172 likes, 3 weeks ago
Comment praising Danny DeVito for ensuring safety and comfort on a film set, especially for children. 172 likes, 3 weeks ago

And it was so genuine to see:

Comment saying, "Why was this the cutest thing ever ?? she clearly felt so safe!!" with 19 likes
Comment saying, "Why was this the cutest thing ever ?? she clearly felt so safe!!" with 19 likes

Lastly, people also enjoyed seeing just how much Danny loved working on this movie:

Comment reading, "You can tell Danny Devito really enjoyed this project," with 9.7k likes
Comment reading, "You can tell Danny Devito really enjoyed this project," with 9.7k likes

And one thing is for certain: This film will forever be a favorite. You can watch Danny share more BTS moments here:

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