Stars on Screen
Gone too soon: She will forever be the expressive child star of “Miracle on 34th Street” (1947); the conflicted teen in love in both “Rebel Without a Cause” (1955) and “Splendor In the Grass” (1961); or Maria, the modernday Juliet, in “West Side Story” (1961).
Sadly and rather unfairly, Natalie Wood’s remarkable career tends to be overshadowed by her tragic death in 1981. But this week, the spotlight will shine once more on Wood’s incredible life and talent, courtesy of HBO.
Premiering Tuesday, May 5, the HBO documentary “Natalie Wood: What Remains Behind” offers viewers a more intimate look at the legendary film star. The film aims to paint a complete portrait of Wood, nee Natalia Nikolaevna Zakharenko, by chronicling her trajectory as an actress while also delving into her off-screen persona.
Filmmaker Laurent Bouzereau obtained the blessing of Wood’s family members, and as such, the documentary is filled with home movies, personal photographs, audio recordings and even diary excerpts. Her daughter, Natasha Gregson Wagner, appears in the documentary, as do Wood’s two husbands: British agent and producer Richard Gregson, who was married to Wood from 1969 to 1972, and actor Robert Wagner, who was both her first and third marriage (they divorced in 1962 but remarried in 1972).
Reunion TBA: There’s nothing wrong with the plane’s left phalange, but the planned “Friends” reunion has been, understandably, delayed.
The cast of the ‘90s NBC sitcom — Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry and David Schwimmer — had planned to reunite for an unscripted special (not a reboot) to promote the series’ debut on HBO Max. The highly anticipated event was scheduled to film in late March and wrap in time for the streaming service’s launch. But with the pandemic causing an industry-wide production shutdown, TV’s “must-stream” reunion has been put on hold, too.
The Hollywood Reporter first broke the news of a possible reunion back in November, and it was officially announced in February. As they did with NBC, the cast negotiated their reunion pay together and were due to earn a whopping $2.5 million to $3 million each for their homecoming on Stage 24 of the Warner
Bros. Studio (note: HBO Max is backed by WarnerMedia, which outbid Netflix for the series’ streaming rights in 2019).
In a statement, HBO Max explained the delay and provided more information about the planned special: “As was previously reported, production is delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This means that the special will not be available on the streamer on Day 1 of launch. But it is coming! The cast and producers are all very excited to go into production, as this will be the first time since the show ended that the whole cast will be together, and on the original sets, to reminisce. There are loads of great surprises in store and lots of rare, behind-thescenes footage they are eager to share. We will keep you informed as plans solidify and once we have a firm premiere date. Lastly, in order to avoid any misunderstanding about what this special is, we want to make it very clear that this is not a new, original episode of the series. The cast will be appearing as themselves, not as their beloved characters. And though fans will have to wait a bit longer for the reunion, they can watch all 236 episodes of the series on Day 1 of HBO Max launch in May!”