Shelley Duvall Returned To The Spotlight And Opened Up About That Infamous Dr. Phil Interview

Audiences hadn’t seen Duvall do what she does best since her role as Detective Dubrinski in Manna from Heaven way back in 2002. So it was startling to see the actress looking so unwell during her chat with TV’s most famous doctor 14 years on. And the statements she made that day had everyone concerned for her mental wellbeing, too.

One of Duvall’s most alarming claims concerned her co-star in 1980 caper Popeye. Robin Williams had tragically taken his own life two years before the interview following a long struggle with depression. But Duvall told Dr. Phil, aka Phil McGraw, that the actor hadn’t passed away, but instead had become a shape shifter.

Duvall also insisted that her body contained a whirring disc and that her life was at risk from the Sheriff of Nottingham. But the 3 Women star appeared to be aware that she wasn’t in a good state of mind. She told the host, “I’m very sick. I need help.”

Dr. Phil was lambasted by many for appearing to take advantage of the unwell star. Vivian Kubrick, whose father, Stanley Kubrick, directed Duvall in iconic horror The Shining, was particularly vocal about her disdain. She tweeted, “Your exploitative use of Shelly Duvall is a form of lurid entertainment and is shameful.”

A writer for the website Jezebel commented, “Shelley Duvall doesn’t need Dr. Phil. Shelley Duvall needs actual help from a team of medical professionals.” You might not know that the host didn’t even have a license to practice psychology at the time. Dr. Phil had allowed it to expire a full decade before the interview took place.

Others, though, such as New York’s ex-mental health commissioner, Dr. Lloyd Sederer, believed that the interview was serving a greater purpose. He told Today that Duvall was “modeling for other people that you don’t have to be ashamed of having a mental illness.” Sederer also dismissed the argument that the actress was being exploited for entertainment.

Sadly, the controversy surrounding Duvall’s interview with Dr. Phil has undoubtedly overshadowed her considerable acting talents. She was a particular favorite of Robert Altman, the acclaimed director who gave the star her big break in 1970’s Brewster McCloud. In fact, Duvall would appear in a further five of his films throughout the following ten years.

Duvall received a BAFTA nomination for her performance in one of those films, 1977’s 3 Women. And then three years later she was cast by Altman as Olive Oyl in the live-action adaptation of Popeye. Woody Allen was also an admirer, having given her a supporting role in what many consider to be his masterpiece, Annie Hall.

And Duvall’s personal life was just as starry as her screen career. Yes, back in the day the actress began a relationship with acclaimed singer-songwriter Paul Simon. She also partied with a then-unknown carpenter named Harrison Ford! But since 1989 she’s been partnered with her Mother Goose Rock ’n’ Rhyme co-star Dan Gilroy.

Duvall and Gilroy have never walked down the aisle, but the former has been married before. In 1970 the actress said “I do” to an artist named Bernard Sampson. But shortly after relocating to a “tiny little cabin over a one-car garage” in Los Angeles four years later, the pair split up.

The year 1980 would prove to be a banner one for Duvall. As well as enjoying box office success with Popeye, she also received rave reviews for her performance as Wendy Torrance in The Shining. But as Duvall later explained, director Stanley Kubrick certainly made her suffer for her art.

The Biography website quotes Duvall as saying, “The first few weeks shooting were so much fun and we all got along great. So, when it came to shooting a serious scene, whether it be looking shocked or terrified, I couldn’t do it. I would start giggling. After a while Stanley became impatient with me, and just let loose. And that terrified me.” Duvall acknowledged that Kubrick’s perfectionism brought out the best in her but summarized the experience as “tough and grueling.”

Duvall’s remarks were backed up by Anjelica Houston, who was dating The Shining’s leading man Jack Nicholson at the time. In 2021 the actress told The Hollywood Reporter, “Shelley was having a bad time just dealing with the emotional content of the piece... and they didn’t seem to be all that sympathetic... She took it on. She was, I think, incredibly brave.”

Another movie icon, Sissy Spacek, was just as effusive in the same piece. The actress, who played Duvall’s roommate in 3 Women, called her former co-star “extraordinary” before adding, “She was funny, kind, everybody adored her. She was always prepared, always in good humor, and took her work really seriously.”

Perhaps wanting something a little lighter to work with after her ordeal on The Shining, Duvall was a regular on kids’ TV in the 1980s. She also founded Platypus Productions and Think Entertainment, two companies specializing in the genre. Faerie Tale Theatre, Nightmare Classics, and Mrs. Piggle Wiggle were just a few of the hit shows that they spawned.

But in the 1990s Duvall began to grow disillusioned with Hollywood life. She subsequently left its bright lights for her home state, Texas, where she spent her time tending to animals and penning poetry. Though Duvall claimed that she’d be open to performing again in the future, she hasn’t acted since 2002.

Of course, Duvall did agree to return to the small screen in 2016. It’s a decision that the actress told The Hollywood Reporter that she now deeply regrets. For Duvall’s infamous appearance on the CBS talk show Dr. Phil instantly changed the public’s perception of her, and sadly not for the better. “A disturbing interview… during which she babbled free-associative nonsense and disclosed paranoid fantasies” was how the same publication described the chat.

Most viewers believed that Dr. Phil and his producers should never have allowed the episode to go ahead in the first place. Duvall was clearly unwell at the time. She’d even agreed to appear without her partner Gilroy knowing anything about it. But for the first time since that worrying interview, Duvall’s now spoken out about how she was treated by the show.

Duvall had trusted the TV personality at the time. But The Hollywood Reporter states that even the mention of Dr. Phil’s name now makes her uncomfortable. The actress went on to admit, “I found out the kind of person he is the hard way.” And as it turns out, so did Duvall’s mother.

Yes, Duvall revealed that her mom was already wary of Dr. Phil. And her mom’s dislike of the TV psychologist intensified once the backlash to the interview began. In a bid to smooth things over, Dr. Phil tried to get in touch with Duvall. And his main approach was allegedly bombarding her mom with calls.

In her chat with The Hollywood Reporter, Duvall revealed that her mother tried to put Dr. Phil in his place but to little avail. The actress said, “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.”

As you’d expect, the Dr. Phil team denied any wrongdoing. A representative from the talk show told The Hollywood Reporter, “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.”

The spokesperson then claimed that the show’s only intention was to help Duvall. They added, “Our goal was to document the struggle and bring amazing resources to change her trajectory as we have for so many over 19 years.” According to the representative, Duvall rejected the Dr. Phil team’s offer of further mental and physical evaluations.

Adding even more fuel to the fire, the rep insisted that the Dr. Phil team had the cooperation of Duvall’s mom when they were attempting to arrange these later consultations. Referring to the actress’ refusals, they stated, “We were of course very disappointed. But those offers for help remain open today.”

The man at the center of the controversy, Dr. Phil, has never addressed the backlash explicitly. But in 2021 he did defend himself over general accusations that he was exploiting those with mental health problems. In a chat with USA Today, the TV personality expressed his belief that having such public discussions is helping to raise understanding among his viewers.

Dr. Phil argued that his show “allows us to talk about these issues in a serious way, so people could go, ‘Wow, my Uncle Bob is exactly that way, and I didn’t realize this is a mental illness. It’s not just him being wacky or bizarre.’ We take it seriously as we go through it. And I think if you go about it that way, people respect the fact that you’re doing it for a reason.”

Despite such claims, the general consensus remains that the show exploited a vulnerable woman for entertainment purposes. Director Lee Unkrich, whose resume includes Coco and Toy Story 3, was certainly troubled by what he saw. He told The Hollywood Reporter, “Unfortunately, on Dr. Phil, the world saw what it’s like to have untreated mental illness.”

Unkrich also believes that the stigma surrounding mental illness has “helped make Shelley mostly forgotten by Hollywood.” But the filmmaker, who’s been busy writing a book about the actress’ most famous film, The Shining, certainly didn’t forget. Unkrich spent the next three years trying to track the reclusive Duvall down.

Eventually, Unkrich managed to find out that Duvall was residing in a small town in Texas. And armed with a series of snaps taken during the filming of The Shining, he traveled there to see the actress in person. Unkrich said, “I was really curious to see how she would react and the stories that it might draw out of her.”

Unkrich soon discovered that the Duvall shown on that infamous episode wasn’t the full story. The actress was still prone to offering conspiracy theories and suffering panic attacks. At the same time, though, she also showed great pride in her Hollywood work and would often recall it in great detail.

The Hollywood Reporter’s Seth Abramovitch revealed that he’d had a similar experience with Duvall when he made the trip to Texas Hill Country in 2021. He wrote, “Her mood ebbed and flowed throughout the day. But, like Unkrich, I found her memory to be sharp and her stories engrossing.”

That sharpness was shown following a series of questions regarding the men she’d worked with. Abramovitch recalled, “Duvall narrowed her gaze and asked, ‘What’s your angle?’ The question – pointed and savvy – made me laugh. It was clear she could still play the game, rendering me a little tongue-tied in the process.”

Unkrich wasn’t the only Duvall fan concerned by her Dr. Phil appearance, either. Ryan Obermeyer, an acclaimed Austin-based artist, had watched the actress on kids show Faerie Tale Theatre during his childhood. And in 2018 he decided to try to get in touch with Duvall by giving her partner Gilroy his phone number.

Duvall obviously appreciated the gesture, as she rang the number within ten minutes of receiving it. The actress went on to develop a friendship with Obermeyer, with the pair regularly heading out for a bite to eat together. And the artist’s doing his best to help reconnect Duvall with her past, too.

Obermeyer successfully bid for the private Duvall correspondence that’d somehow found its way onto eBay and returned it to her. The artist also arranged a FaceTime session with one of her old Faerie Tale Theatre colleagues Paul Reubens in 2019 to help celebrate her 70th birthday. And Obermeyer’s efforts didn’t end there.

That’s right: in another heart-warming gesture, Obermeyer organized a birthday bash at Duvall’s favorite eatery, Red Lobster. He also asked several of the actress’ long-time admirers to join in with the celebrations, including someone all the way from Australia. And Obermeyer even ordered a special Faerie Tale Theatre cake.

And Duvall’s entire community appear to be making sure that she doesn’t get taken advantage of again. Waitress Kristina Keller told The Hollywood Reporter, “I’m not sure who you are. But out here amongst these rural Hill Country communities, we look out for each other and we take care of each other.”

Duvall seems to appreciate being such a valued member of her community. The former actress will often spend a whole day in her beloved Toyota 4Runner conversing with her neighbors and tucking into the snacks she always has at hand. It’s a far cry from Hollywood parties with the rich and famous. But Abramovitch believes there’s still a semblance of the old Duvall intact.

Abramovitch wrote, “Her hair has thinned and grayed, her breathy, Minnie Mouse voice gone gravelly (she chain-smokes Parliaments) and her trademark stick figure – the one she used to full advantage playing Olive Oyl in Robert Altman’s Popeye – has filled out. But there are tells. Her eyes still sparkle, even from a distance. And her toothy grin is warm and familiar.”

It’s funny; Abramovitch’s quote could almost sum up Jack Nicholson, too — Duvall’s co-star in the shining. Apart from the bit about the Minnie Mouse voice and Popeye, of course! But yes, Nicholson certainly looks very different from when he played Duvall’s husband. And the similarities between the stars don't end there. Like Duvall, Nicholson has had a bit of a bumpy ride in life.

In the mid-1970s, Jack Nicholson was on top of the world. The leading man could get any role and seemingly any girlfriend he wanted, but his star-power also shone a light on a long-hidden family secret. After he received that fateful phone call, those closest to Jack wondered if he would ever be the same.

As a 37-year-old movie star, Jack Nicholson didn't spend too much time thinking about his childhood. There were too many extravagant parties and premieres that demanded his attention. But a tip from Time magazine sent him sorting through old memories.

By all accounts, the actor's earliest years were pretty quiet. Jack's parents, John and Ethel May Nicholson, were a bit on the older side, but quite compassionate. They encouraged their boy to chase his passions.

Nicholson fit in quite well with his New Jersey schoolmates. Besides being active in multiple clubs and sports teams, the boy took a shine to the stage and performed in various local productions. He had some big cheerleaders in addition to his parents.

He had two older sisters, June and Lorraine, who were already teenagers by the time Jack was born in 1937. Despite the age gap, the girls always looked out for him and encouraged him to chase his dreams.

Seeing how much Jack enjoyed performing, they suggested that he give Hollywood a shot. In fact, one of his sisters already moved out to Tinseltown, so a 17-year-old Nicholson went to visit her and find his big break.

He had a surprising amount of early success. On that initial trip, Hanna-Barbera tried to hire Jack — a nimble artist — as one of their animators. The rising star turned them down, as he had only one profession in mind.

Jack desperately wanted to be an actor, and that wish came true in 1958. His first part was the titular character in The Cry Baby Killer, a melodramatic thriller. Though not his finest work, it set up Nicholson for steady employment.

A breakthrough in the late '60s finally gave Nicholson the career he really wanted. Easy Rider erupted into a counterculture blockbuster, earning Jack his first Oscar nomination and international stardom.

Following acclaimed performances in Five Easy Pieces and The Last Detail, Nicholson probably could've walked into any newsstand and picked up a magazine with his likeness. Ahead of the release of Chinatown, however, a reporter from Time came across an inconsistency that no one else ever noticed.

The emerging truth was so jolting that the publication reached out to Nicholson directly for comment. They had to make sure they weren't missing some crucial piece of information, after all. But Nicholson knew nothing about their findings.

It had revolved around the actor's true parentage. According to Time's research, John and Ethel May Nicholson weren't his biological parents at all. They'd lied about that story for their entire lives...

They were actually Nicholson's grandparents! And his "sisters" June and Lorraine were his mother and aunt, respectively. Apparently June — underage and unmarried — couldn't deal with the stigma of having a child, so the Nicholsons invented a cover story to maintain her respectability.

Jack saw that all of the reporter's sources were accurate, though the truth was hard to believe on some level. He'd been at the deathbeds of John, Ethel May, and June in years prior, and none of them told him anything.

Because of this, Nicholson would never truly know who his birth father was. The strongest candidate was a vaudeville performer named Donald Rose, whom June unsuccessfully tried to marry, but she was also involved with other men in that period.

With the bizarre cover-up confirmed, Time broke the story. Chinatown, the reporter's original impetus behind the Nicholson profile, coincidentally featured a similar twist where one character is revealed to be the sister and the daughter of another.

That parallel only made the Nicholson revelation more eerie. After seeing the actor deceived for his entire life, fans and loved ones alike speculated how he would respond. Would he feel traumatized? Would it send him spiraling into lunacy?

Not quite. "By the time I found out who my mother was, I was pretty well psychologically formed," explained Nicholson, jokingly adding,"I was very impressed by their ability to keep the secret if nothing else. It’s done great things for me."

The actor never seemed to take marriage too seriously, whether in his own life or his family's. But there was one woman who ruled his heart for a time. He spent nearly two decades with Anjelica Huston, but ultimately, the two separated in 1990.

Though he might've made light of his parentage, that report very could have influenced Nicholson's own fathering style. He strove to always be there for his kids — and owned up to his mistakes. That wasn't easy, considering he had five children with four different women, but some fans can't get over how much his kids look just like him.