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Mrs Doubtfire child stars reunite more than 30 years after Robin Williams blockbuster

Mara Wilson, Matthew Lawrence and Lisa Jakub portrayed the three Hillard children in the 1993 family comedy

Inga Parkel
Thursday 02 May 2024 18:02 BST
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Deleted scene from Mrs. Doubtfire shows emotional moment between father and daughter

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The three child stars who featured alongside the late Robin Williams in the family comedy classic Mrs Doubtfire have reunited more than 30 years since the film’s release.

Mara Wilson, Matthew Lawrence and Lisa Jakub portrayed the three Hillard children, whose divorced father Daniel (Williams) poses as an older British nanny and tricks his ex-wife Miranda (Sally Field) into hiring him to take care of the children in the 1993 movie.

Wilson, who portrayed the youngest Hillard child, Natalie, reunited with her co-stars Lawrence and Jakub, who played Chris and Lydia respectively, to speak on the Brotherly Love podcast, hosted by Lawrence’s real-life brothers Andrew and Joey.

Sharing a photo of the reunion on Instagram on Wednesday (1 May), Wilson wrote: “So funny that the same week I went to San Francisco, I got to reunite with my Doubtfire siblings! It’s always a joy to see @lisa.jakub and @matthewlawrence, and always so much fun to be on @officialbrotherlylovepod.”

The movie was set in San Francisco, with a majority of the filming locations taking place there, too.

Several fans responded to the “heartwarming” photo in the comments below, with with one eagerly writing: “This is so lovely!”

“My heart can’t take this,” a second said, while another added: “Love that you have all kept in touch.”

Wilson, now 36, was only six when she made her film debut in Mrs Doubtfire. She later went on star in several movies, including the 1996 fantasy comedy Matilda and A Simple Wish (1997). Following her role in the 2000 fantasy adventure movie Thomas and the Magic Railroad, Wilson retired from film acting.

Lawrence, now 44, was 14 when he starred in Mrs Doubtfire, while Jakub, now 45, was 15.

Lisa Jakub, Robin Williams, Mara Wilson and Matthew Lawrence in ‘Mrs Doubtfire’
Lisa Jakub, Robin Williams, Mara Wilson and Matthew Lawrence in ‘Mrs Doubtfire’ (Snap/Shutterstock)

When Mrs Doubtfire premiered in cinemas, it landed as the second-highest-grossing movie of the year, raking in $441m at the worldwide box office.

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In an interview with Business Insider last year, the movie’s director, Chris Columbus, revealed that the prospect of a sequel had shuttered following the tragic death of Williams, who died by suicide in 2014, aged 63.

“It’s an interesting thing. Back then, there was an attitude that sequels were looked down upon by the artists. So Robin was against doing a sequel immediately after,” Columbus said. “He and I didn’t talk about a sequel until the year he passed away.”

“We had a script that was written and it was the last time I saw Robin,” he added. “I went to his house and we sat down and talked about it and the script was really strong. Robin’s only comment was, ‘Boss, do I have to be in the suit as much this time?’ It was physically demanding. For Robin, I think it was like running a marathon every day he was in the Doubtfire costume. He was older, obviously. So we talked about it and I think he was hoping in the rewrite we would cut back on the Doubtfire character. But then Robin passed away so there will never be a sequel to Mrs. Doubtfire.

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