Reclusive 'The Shining' star Shelley Duvall, 73, makes a rare appearance 20 years after leaving showbiz
TEXAS HILL COUNTY, TEXAS: Shelley Duvall of 'The Shining' posed for a rare photo with a fan on Wednesday, September 28, 20 years after retiring from acting. She was seen wearing a grey jumper and smiling next to a fan. The actress, 73, suffered from mental health issues after starring in the film as Wendy Torrance, prompting her to leave show business and become a "recluse" from Hollywood.
In the 1980s film, Shelley played the wife of Jack's character, Jack Torrance, who goes insane while trapped inside a snowbound resort hotel. Shelley previously hinted at her battle with mental illness when filming 'The Shining,' which was released in 1980 but took 500 days to make. While she has played multiple critically-acclaimed roles in her career, she had disappeared from the public eye -- she retired from acting in 2002. We take a look back at what led the actress to become a recluse.
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Director Stanley Kubrick reportedly pushed Shelley harder than her on-screen husband, Jack Nicholson. She was reportedly isolated by the cast and crew, made to retake scenes numerous times, and kept from knowing what Jack and the legendary director were improvising in order to scare her even more. After 'The Shining', Duvall starred in a number of other films, including 1980s 'Popeye' with Robin Williams. However, she chose to move from Studio City, California to Texas 27 years ago and has not worked as an actress since 2002.
Duvall revealed her battle with mental illness in November 2016 after avoiding the spotlight for 15 years. In a very rare interview she gave in 2021 Shelley discussed her iconic part in the movie and revealed that she would cry for days while filming. The 71-year-old Duvall was last seen on TV in 2016 during her appearance on Dr Phil. "I’m very sick, I need help," Duvall admitted on the show. "Well, that’s why I’m here," replied Dr Phil. After one hour of Duvall rambling, periodically appearing agitated and disoriented, Dr Phil informed audiences, "After three days at the treatment center, Shelley still refused to take any medications and she would not sign the paperwork required to treat her."
Kubrick's psychological brutalization of Duvall was so severe that her hair began to fall out. She spoke to The Hollywood Reporter in the Texas Hill Country and opened up about her exhausting filming days with Kubrick, known for being a strict taskmaster. Duvall said that in order to embody the character, she had to maintain a constant state of panic in her mind. She explained, "[Kubrick] doesn't print anything until at least the 35th take. Thirty-five takes, running and crying and carrying a little boy, it gets hard. And full performance from the first rehearsal. That's difficult." She also said, "To wake up on a Monday morning, so early, and realize that you had to cry all day because it was scheduled — I would just start crying."
After ‘The Dr Phil Show, and the ensuing backlash, the host reportedly made repeated attempts at contacting Duvall. The actress told The Hollywood Reporter, "He started calling my mother. She told him, 'Don't call my daughter anymore.' But he started calling my mother all the time trying to get her to let me talk to him again." A spokesperson for Dr Phil's show said in a statement, "We view every Dr Phil episode, including Miss Duvall and her struggle with mental illness, as an opportunity to share relatable, useful information and perspective with our audiences. We don’t attach the stigma associated with mental illness which many do. With no one else offering help, our goal was to document the struggle and bring amazing resources to change her trajectory as we have for so many over 19 years. Unfortunately, she declined our initial offer for inpatient treatment that would have included full physical and mental evaluations, giving her a chance to privately manage her challenges. After many months of follow-up, in collaboration with her mother, she ultimately refused assistance. We were of course very disappointed, but those offers for help remain open today."