Danny DeVito says there are plans for a Matilda reunion

Danny DeVito has revealed there are plans in place for a Matilda reunion with lead star Mara Wilson. 

• READ MORE: ‘Roald Dahl’s Matilda The Musical’ review: much-loved children’s story dances to a new tune

The two actors appeared together in the 1996 film adaptation of Roald Dahl’s novel, with DeVito as director. 

Now, DeVito has disclosed that there is a plan for he and Wilson to collaborate on Matilda in Concert, for which the duo will narrate the film over a live score by the composer David Newman. 

Speaking to The Messenger, DeVito said: “Mara and I were planning to perform Matilda live with the New Jersey Philharmonic Orchestra just before the strike hit. We had it all set, but after the strike hit, we couldn’t proceed because it would be seen as a promotion for a movie.” 

“However, we’re still planning to do that. We’re going to watch the movie with David Newman’s score and try to do it sometime soon, as it seems the strike may be coming to an end — I hope!” 

Wilson, who played the titular character in the film, also appeared in Mrs. Doubtfire and Miracle on 34th Street in the ‘90s, before deciding to retire from acting in 2001. After a 12-year break, she returned to the profession in 2013, appearing in a number of web series. 

Earlier this year, she explained to The Guardian that the pressure of appearing in such high profile films as a child actor took its toll on her. “People don’t realise how much constantly talking to the press as a child weighs on you,” she said. “When you have fans, you can no longer be yourself when you’re out in public.” 

“I saw that they were disappointed that I wasn’t as smart, pretty, nice as they expect you to be. I think they were expecting me to be Matilda, and she’s wonderful, but she’s not real,” she continued. 

“She’s brilliant in every single way. She’s smart, kind and powerful. Then they met me, this nerdy, awkward teenager who got angry sometimes but couldn’t even channel her anger into powers. I was never going to live up to that.” 

In 2019, DeVito said that he had considered making a sequel to Matilda. When promoting his film Jumanji: The Next Level, he said, “I always wanted to do Matilda 2, but when the kid was still a kid. But that was like 20 years ago, 25 years ago. Maybe Matilda has a kid and we can do something with that, I don’t know.” 

A film version of Tim Minchin’s musical version of Matilda was released in 2022, directed by Matthew Warchus and starring Alisha Weir, Lashana Lynch, Stephen Graham and Emma Thompson. 

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