Child star Mara Wilson came to fame during the 1990s, starring in three blockbuster films before the age of 10. She became well recognized after her roles in “Mrs. Doubtfire” (1993), “Miracle on 34th Street” (1994) and “Matilda” (1995).
But just after the filming of Matilda in the early 90s, a young Mara lost her mother after a long battle with a tough bout of cancer. She was only 8 years old when her mother passed away, leaving a huge hole behind that would hardly heal with time.
During this grief-stricken time, post-production work for “Matilda” still needed to be done, something that Mara remembers as a positive force in an otherwise hectic life.
“Filming had wrapped and it was about six months later, while we were doing post-production work, when my mother passed away,” she told Parade in 2013. “I remember feeling, when I was part of Matilda, that it was nice because I could focus on that and I could focus on everything good that was going on in my life.”
It wasn’t always easy to cope, though. Wilson, like any child with a sick parent, struggled with her mother’s illness. That’s where co-stars and film parents Danny DeVito and Rhea Perlman came in.
“They’re great people; they were really there for me and my family,” Wilson wrote in her memoir “Where Am I Now?” according to People. “They had a movie theater, and we’d watch Oliver and Company and Twister and all these kids’ movies.”
In the movie, DeVito and Perlman play a pair of oppressive parents who refuse to let their daughter realize her true powers. But off-screen, Wilson says, they were incredibly supportive and helpful.
“It felt very familial on that set,” Wilson told Parade. “I was going through a hard time and I know I had hard days, but everyone on the film was so nice.”
“Danny [DeVito] and Rhea [Perlman] were like my favorite aunt and uncle. It was wonderful. I remember feeling anxious when the movie wrapped, and it was really hard to go back to being normal and dealing with my mom’s sickness,” Wilson remembers. DeVito and Perlman have been married in real life since 1982.
“I definitely feel like having that family there, and having people willing to take care of us and help us out, made it easier.”
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