Robin Williams Protected $262M Movie Co-Star Kirsten Dunst When Director Asked Her to Work Extra Hours to Save $100K
It’s not really easy being a child actor. The pressure of performing well to kickstart your career makes young actors nervous. Sometimes, they are asked to overwork as creators tend to forget that they are just kids. The same thing happened to Kirsten Dunst and Bradley Pierce when they were young. Dunst and Pierce starred in Joe Johnston’s Jumanji (1995) when they were 12 and 13 respectively. Legendary actor Robin Williams was also a part of the movie as he played the role of Alan Parrish. In 2020, Bradley Pierce revealed that Williams came to their rescue on the sets of the movie as they were asked to work overtime.
Jumanji (1995) was a success
Director Joe Johnston’s Jumanji (1995) was undoubtedly a commercial success, it was one of the highest-grossing movies of 1995, grossing over $262 million worldwide. The movie kickstarted the very-famous Jumanji franchise which has generated large amounts of money for the studios. The 1995 movie saw two kids (Kirsten Dunst and Bradley Pierce) meeting a man named Alan Parrish (Robin Williams) while playing a magical board game called Jumanji.
Kirsten Dunst and Bradley Pierce were asked to work overtime
Kirsten Dunst and Bradley Pierce were 12 and 13 respectively when they worked in the film. In 2020, Pierce revealed that the shooting drained him and Dunst a lot as the creators asked them to work overtime. He told the Independent,
“Children can only be on set for a number of hours. The producers had approached our parents and said, ‘Is there any way we can do a bit of overtime to get it done?’ That’s not uncommon at all in the industry because it literally saves $100,000 plus to do that extra half hour rather than a whole day.”
Pierce was reportedly asked to wear makeup for long hours. It is not surprising that the creators exploit young artists since the kids are looking for their big break. Not to mention the pressure that they face on the sets.
Robin Williams then intervened and saved the kids
Bradley Pierce further revealed that Robin Williams saved the kids after he got to know everything. He revealed that Williams then told the director of the film,
“No, we are not doing any extra time. You’re going to let everybody out now and we’re going to come back next week.”
Pierce then explained that Williams left a lasting impression on him and Dunst, adding that he was “warm, generous, kind, and also very protective.”
On August 11, 2014, the world lost one of its greatest actors, Robin Williams. It was revealed that he died due to suicide resulting from “asphyxia due to hanging.” After further investigation, it was revealed that the actor suffered from Lewy body dementia.
Source: The Independent
