Danny DeVito, who directed and starred in the 1996 movie Matilda, is planning a concert event to celebrate the film, including a reunion with star Mara Wilson. The event was being planned prior to the start of the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) strike in July, and according to DeVito will still happen — but not until after the strike has concluded and he doesn’t have to worry about the event being considered free press for a struck studio. That, of course, is a line that actors have had to be very careful about when they attend events like comic book and pop culture conventions, talking about their careers without appearing to promote struck work.
DeVito did not indicate whether his wife Rhea Pearlman, who also appeared in the film, might be featured at the event. Pearlman and DeVito separated ten years ago, but have remained married and still routinely spend time together both publicly and privately.
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“Mara and I were planning to perform Matilda live with the New Jersey Philharmonic Orchestra just before the strike hit,” DeVito told The Messenger (via Deadline). “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!”
Matilda in Concert was originally scheduled for September 9th at the State Theatre New Jersey, but was postponed, with no substitute date yet set.
“Everyone involved in this production was very much looking forward to performing together this September, and we are disappointed to have to postpone it, but we look forward to holding the performance on a future date once the strike has concluded,” says a statement on the theater’s website.
Wilson, a child star who also appreared in Mrs. Doubtfire and Miracle on 34th Street, has scaled back her live-action work over the years, opting instead for a career in writing, voice acting, and online content. She published Where Am I Now?: True Stories of Girlhood and Accidental Fame in 2016.
DeVito and Pearlman have both had big-budget blockbusters drop in theaters since the start of the strike. DeVito played a prominent role in The Haunted Mansion, while Pearlman played Ruth Handler, the creator of Barbie, in Barbie.
