We can now add 'actual hero' to Danny DeVito's long CV after hearing about the incredible gift he gave Mara Wilson’s dying mum.
The 1996 film adaptation of Roald Dahl’s classic children’s book Matilda was directed by DeVito and he also starred as the titular character’s shady car salesman dad, Harry Wormwood.
Matilda went on to become a certified classic, however its star was going through a very tough time behind the scenes during production.
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Wilson’s mum, Suzie Wilson, battled breast cancer before passing away on 26 April 1996 - four months before the film's release - and Wilson thought her mum never got to see her on the big screen as the telekinetic child prodigy.
The former child star was only eight years old when Matilda was filmed. The finished movie was dedicated to Suzie, which viewers might have noticed in the end credits.
In her 2016 memoir Where Am I Now?, Wilson said her mum – who was a big fan of the character Matilda and Roald Dahl’s book – was able to see an early cut of the film before she passed away.
Wilson's mum even urged her to go after the role of Matilda.
DeVito eventually revealed to Wilson years later about the time he showed Wilson’s mum the film in hospital before she died.
Don’t worry, you’re not the only one with tears in their eyes.
Wilson, who is now 35, opened up about admiration for DeVito and his wife Rhea Perlman, who played Zinni, in 2021 for Matilda’s 25th anniversary.
Speaking to Entertainment Tonight, Wilson gushed: “Danny and Rhea would take me to the theatre to see a play, or to the movies or to just hang out at their house, things like that that was all usually done when my mother was in the hospital.
"It really did keep me distracted, and it really did keep me happy."
Wilson, who is now a full-time writer, said she ‘loved’ the dedication to her mum. "They dedicated the movie to my mother, and I'm so glad that they did that, because my mother worked so hard and she loved that movie so much,and she loved Matilda so much, so I really loved that they did that," she said.
“I felt so glad when I saw that in the credits, and I still feel happy when I see that now."
Topics: TV and Film
Gregory Robinson