“Matilda”: 5 secrets behind the filming of the 1996 film that is popular again on Netflix

The film version of “Matilda the Musical”premiered in Netflix on December 25 and is, to date, one of the most watched movies in the TOP 10 of the streaming platform. But, thanks to the premiere of this new version of the classic by British novelist Roald Dahl, the 1996 film starring Mara Wilson and directed by Danny DeVito, is also one of the most successful within the company of the great N.

For this reason, regarding this revival of the iconic film of the nineties, here are five curious facts about its filming.

The well-remembered scene in which the director Tronchatoro calls out one of the girls for wearing braids to school when they are prohibited, was done with the help of a crane and a harness.

“Jacqueline (Steiger) loved wearing a harness”, says Danny DeVito in a documentary about the film released in 2005. The actor and director also revealed that the then girl read as much as the character of Matilda, between takes. On the scene itself, the minor was placed false braids that can be pulled by the cruel director without hurting her. However, these were released, forcing a repeat take.

Another important detail of the 1996 film is the makeup that actress Pam Ferris underwent to play the fearsome director Tronchatoro. According to Ve Neill, the makeup artist in charge of her, they made a mold of her face for the actress and placed gelatin implants.

“We gave her a point on her nose, and bags, to make her look older and more tired. In addition, we colored all the imperfections on her face, and we painted broken veins and a slight mustache and beard ”, Neill related in the aforementioned documentary.

Ferris’s teeth also underwent changes. These were painted with a brown color, to simulate tobacco stains.

The remembered scene of the chocolate cake eaten by Bruce Bolaños (Jimmy Karz) took two weeks. “This is disgusting but I’m going to tell it,” revealed DeVito, who explained that what they did was fill the child actor’s face with chocolate, they cut, he spit out what little he had eaten and so on.

“If he were to eat the whole cake, he would have seriously exploded. It was a lot of cake and it was delicious, ”said the director.

During the filming of “Matilda”, Mara Wilson’s mother was diagnosed with breast cancer. So, Danny DeVito and his wife Rhea offered to take care of the girl whenever her parents needed to go to the hospital.

After filming wrapped, Suzie’s condition worsened and she passed away on April 26, 1996. Weeks earlier, DeVito showed her the film, still unfinished, so she could see her daughter’s work.

In 2016, Mara Wilson posted “Where Am I Now? True Stories of Girlhood and Accidental Fame” (”Where I am now? True Stories of Accidental Childhood Fame”), a book in which she recounts her experience as a child in Hollywood and how bad she felt about her physique as a teenager.

“I would look at Keira (Knightley), who is two years older than me, in the magazines and think: ‘There’s no way I’m going to be as beautiful as her in two years. Things will hardly have changed by then.’ I felt annoyed – and still sometimes do – every time I met someone, because many seemed disappointed to find out that I was not pretty, “said the actress.

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