How Kirsten Dunst’s ‘Jumanji’ Co-Star Robin Williams Protected Her as a Child Star
It has been nearly a decade since the death of iconic comedian Robin Williams. But he is still lovingly remembered by fans all over the world for his kindness and generosity. Williams was much more than just a comic genius and a gifted actor. He was also a genuinely thoughtful human being as well.
Many of Williams’ former co-stars have opened up about their experiences working with the late star. In 2020, one former child star who worked with him in the 1995 cult classic Jumanji revealed that Williams was a major advocate for the child performers on the set, including young Kirsten Dunst.
Robin Williams and Kirsten Dunst starred in the 1995 hit ‘Jumanji’
By the time Williams was cast as Alan Parrish in Jumanji, he was already a huge star. Williams rose to fame for his work in TV shows like Mork & Mindy. And he quickly proved that he was a gifted dramatic actor as well. Williams had the unique ability to embrace outlandish physical comedy all while imbuing his characters with heart and deep emotion.
Jumanji featured a truly star-studded cast, with Williams in the lead. He starred alongside Bonnie Hunt as Sarah Whittle, while a young Kirsten Dunst played Judy Shepherd. Based on the popular children’s book, Jumanji tells the story of a supernatural board game that involves players in an immersive adventure that features real-life threats — including dangerous jungle creatures.
How did Robin Williams protect his young ‘Jumanji’ co-stars Kirsten Dunst and Bradley Pierce?
Williams worked closely with Dunst and Bradley Pierce, who played Peter Shepherd. The two young protagonists free Alan Parrish after years of entrapment in the Jumanji board game. In 2020, eight years after Williams’ death, Pierce shared how Williams actively defended himself and Dunst from over-zealous film producers.
As reported by the Independent, Pierce called the shoot for Jumanji “draining,” recalling a particular sequence where his character was transformed into a monkey. The process for filming the scene required Pierce, who was then 13 years old, to sit through complicated makeup that wouldn’t allow him to properly breathe through his nose.
“Children can only be on set for a number of hours,” Pierce said. “The producers had approached our parents and said, ‘Is there any way we can do a bit of overtime to get it done?’ That’s not uncommon at all in the industry because it literally saves $100,000 plus to do that extra half hour rather than a whole day.”
But Pierce said that Williams found out about these conversations and intervened. He pulled the director of the film aside and explaining that Pierce and Dunst wouldn’t be putting in those long hours. “He said, ‘No, we are not doing any extra time. You’re going to let everybody out now and we’re going to come back next week,'” shared Pierce.
Robin Williams left a legacy of love and laughter
Pierce explained that Williams’ kind actions left an impression on both him and Dunst. “For all the dollars that would have cost, nobody would have stood up the way he did. In addition to being warm, generous and kind, he was also very protective,” Pierce recalled.
Child stars have a history of being exploited. But it’s clear that Williams was doing what he could in order to ensure that didn’t happen with Dunst and Pierce. It is Williams’ kindness, as much as his talent, that made him such an icon.
