Yahoo Lifestyle Sally Field Shares Touching Memory Of Robin Williams And "Mrs. Doubtfire," And Fans Can't Hold Back Their Tears
For the 10th anniversary of Robin Williams's untimely death, Vanity Fair asked his costars and friends to share their favorite memories of the Grammy, Emmy, and Oscar-winning actor.
Billy Crystal, Matt Damon, Ben Stiller, Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Julianne Moore, and others shared their memories of working with the incredibly talented comedian and entertainer.
E. Charbonneau / WireImage for Sony Pictures-Los Angeles, Evan Agostini / Getty Images
Sally Field, who starred alongside Robin in 1993's Mrs. Doubtfire, shared a heartfelt story about how her compassionate costar made special arrangements during filming to accommodate her during a very challenging time, and it's moving.
Sally's father, Richard Dryden Field Sr., a World War II veteran, passed away during filming. Although she planned not to disrupt the production, Robin felt something was wrong with Sally and made the director, Chris Columbus (Home Alone, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone), change the order of filming so they could film around Sally for a day.
"I never shared this story before," Sally said. "I was in the camper outside of the courtroom where we were shooting the divorce scene. My father had a stroke a couple of years before, and was in a nursing facility."
Sally continued, "I got a phone call from the doctor saying my father had passed — a massive stroke. He asked if I wanted them to put him on the resuscitator. I said, 'No, he did not want that. Just let him go. And please lean down and say, "Sally says goodbye."'"
"I was of course beside myself," Sally added. "I came on the set trying with all my might to act. I wasn't crying. Robin came over, pulled me out of the set, and asked, 'Are you okay?'"
Sally eventually explained to Robin that her father had died, and she recalled him saying, "Oh my God, we need to get you out here right now."
"And he made it happen — they shot around me the rest of the day," Sally said. "I could go back to my house, call my brother and make arrangements. It's a side of Robin that people rarely knew: He was very sensitive and intuitive."
Sally's comments about Robin have started circulating on the internet, and many people are taking time to remember Robin's legacy and how his larger-than-life characters made them feel.
If you didn't know, Robin played in almost 80 movies, from gut-busting comedies and gritty dramas to iconic animation voiceovers.
1998, he won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for Good Will Hunting. 1987–88, he won two Emmys for Outstanding Performance in a Variety of Music Program. He also won multiple Grammys for comedy and spoken word albums in 1980, 1988–89, and 2003.
Responding to Variety's share of the story, one person wrote: "I still cry for him. God rest his soul."
I still cry for him. God rest his soul.
— Alexander Nevermind (@AlexNever347) August 8, 2024
Another person wrote: "Such an amazing human. hope he's resting peacefully always."
such an amazing human. hope he’s resting peacefully always 🤍
— j (@njhftdolans) August 8, 2024
"A beautiful thing about Robin was he was never boastful of the good things he did for others. The world is a lot more dimmer without his presence," another user wrote.
A beautiful thing about Robin was he was never boastful of the good things he did for others. The world is a lot more dimmer without his presence
— Anthony Grigsby (@MrAMG) August 8, 2024
One of Robin's youngest costars in Mrs. Doubtfire also had a delightful memory about the actor. Mara Wilson, who played his daughter in the film, said, "People are always surprised when I tell them that Robin could be very quiet. When I was nine, we did a table read of What Dreams May Come, shortly after my mother had died."
"He came up to me and very gently asked how I was, and how my family was, but didn't bring up anything that could have been painful. He was just very sweet."
Chris, who also directed Nine Months and Bicentennial Man, which starred Robin, said this was due to the late actor's knack for hilarious improvisation. "Robin and I made a deal. He said, 'We're going do two or three scripted takes, and then we are going to play.'"
"The scene where he's getting out of his Mrs. Doubtfire costume when the social worker arrives was brutally improvised. And the final scene in the restaurant. Sally Field, Pierce Brosnan, and the kids had no idea what Robin was going to say next."
Sally added, "It was my task to simply respond to whatever he did, as a real person would. I completely loved that stay-on-your-toes feeling."
"You couldn't really see what Mrs. Doubtfire was on the page. It became its own life form primarily because of him," she said.
Robin's relationship with his costars and the cast of Mrs. Doubtfire lifted spirits and made everyone feel like he was their friend. The movie was filmed in San Francisco, and Chris said it was "his hometown, so he knew a lot of the crew members [on Mrs. Doubtfire]."
"By the end of the first week, he had learned everybody's name, from the caterers to the production assistants. And if anyone had a quirk, he would remember and make a joke. It made everyone feel like he was their friend and put everyone in a fantastic mood."
Mara added that while filming a memorable scene at the petting zoo, Robin "took off his hat, put some oats in it, and fed the pony I was riding. Then he turned to me with the slobber-covered hat: 'Wanna wear it?' I must have made a disgusted face, because Chris called 'Cut!' and everyone burst out laughing."
Ultimately, his memory through Mrs. Doubtfire and beyond had a lasting impression on his collaborators, costars, friends, and fans.
Finally, Sally put it best when describing the character that Robin Williams built on and off the screen: "I keep thinking of him as 'is.' He can't have left; he can't. He's still here. I feel him."
His memory will never leave as long as there are movies like Jumanji, Aladdin, Hook, Insomnia, Dead Poets Society, The Birdcage, and many, many more to watch over and over again. He's still here, for sure.
United Artists / ©United Artists/Courtesy Everett Collection
Read the full interview here.
Do you have a favorite Robin Williams moment or memory? Share in the comments.
