New York (AFP) – Shelley Duvall, the versatile actor known for her role in “The Shining” and collaboration with director Robert Altman, died Thursday aged 75.
Citing her partner Dan Gilroy, The Hollywood Reporter said Duvall died in her sleep at her home in Blanco, Texas following complications of diabetes.
Born July 7, 1949 in Fort Worth, Texas, Duvall was discovered by Altman — the maverick filmmaker known for his rich characters, sharp social criticism and keen satire — who cast her in 1970’s dark comedy “Brewster McCloud.”
The saucer-eyed actor developed a broad repertoire and captivated audiences, breaking through with 1975’s “Nashville,” and going on to portray memorable and eccentric characters that earned her a smattering of awards including at Cannes for her role in the acclaimed 1977 drama “3 Women.”
Her career was defined by her work with Altman, who she said she kept coming back to because “he offers me damn good roles.”
“None of them have been alike,” she told The New York Times in 1977.
“He has a great confidence in me, and a trust and respect for me, and he doesn’t put any restrictions on me or intimidate me, and I love him.”
In a 1977 interview Altman praised Duvall for being able “to swing all sides of the pendulum: charming, silly, sophisticated, pathetic — even beautiful.”
– ‘She’s free’
But it was her work on the 1980 film adaptation of Stephen King’s “The Shining” that would become her highest profile role, which she played opposite Jack Nicholson.
Director Stanley Kubrick put her through the ringer to perform the part of Wendy Torrance in the horror classic that sees a writer husband descend into homicidal madness and terrorize his wife and young son.
Duvall has voiced admiration for Kubrick but also has publicly discussed how arduous the role was, telling People in 1981 the 13-month job was grueling and that Kubrick had her “crying 12 hours a day for weeks on end.”
“I will never give that much again. If you want to get into pain and call it art, go ahead, but not with me.”
In one famous scene Nicholson’s character tortures Duvall’s with a baseball bat, which reportedly took 127 takes to satisfy Kubrick.
Duvall also made a cameo in 1977’s “Annie Hall” by Woody Allen, and played opposite Robin Williams in Altman’s 1980 live-action rendition of “Popeye.”
Later in the 1980s she made her way into children’s programming.
Her last film was 2023’s “The Forest Hills,” an independent horror-thriller she played in after a two-decade hiatus from professional acting.
Duvall’s fade from Hollywood prompted much speculation, over both her mental health and her aged appearance.
In a 2024 interview with The New York Times both she and Gilroy voiced exasperation at such treatment.
She indicated she felt betrayed by the industry in which she excelled, even as her body of work continues to earn her new fans.
“I was a star; I had leading roles,” she said in the rare interview.
“People think it’s just aging, but it’s not. It’s violence.”
“How would you feel if people were really nice, and then, suddenly, on a dime… they turn on you?”
Gilroy — a musician who was part of the Breakfast Club band and had dated Madonna — was Duvall’s longtime partner after the pair met on the 1990 Disney Channel Movie “Mother Goose Rock ‘n’ Rhyme.”
“My dear, sweet, wonderful life partner and friend left us. Too much suffering lately, now she’s free. Fly away, beautiful Shelley,” Gilroy said in a widely published statement.
© 2024 AFP
