My theory has been that Walken was in an impossible situation. He wasn't a big name actor at the time and had zero clout in the industry. He may have been threatened by "fixers" who helped cover up the facts to protect Wagner. (They probably also rationalized the coverup was to help Natalie's good reputation and legacy). Walken probably gave his account to police, but since they were involved in the cover up, it's probably still in a filing cabinet somewhere.
JMO, Walken tried to do what he could to help, but was threatened by RW and the drowning actually happened pretty quickly, before they could convince RW to let them help her. I've always had the perception from him that he was very upset with what happened, but felt he did all he could to help. He may regret not getting physical with RW, but it may not have made any difference. It would have taken two or more people to get her out of the water and back into the boat. It was a big boat that sat high off the water and someone on board would have had to help get them up, esp in the dark.
I really liked him in "The Deer Hunter" and hoped to see him in a lot more movies. He didn't get a lot of good parts for years afterwards (no movie roles from '83 to ,85), probably as a way to pressure him into keeping quiet.
SBM to focus on Walken. Walken was a big named actor by that point, having won two Oscars. He began acting as a teen and was very successful in theater. By the early 70s he had begun his film career. By 1981, with two Oscars under his belt, he had no trouble finding work, then or afterwards.
I don't believe RW could have or did stall his career in the early 80s.
"Walken's first film of the 1980s was the controversial*Heaven's Gate, directed by Cimino of*Deer Hunter*fame. Walken also starred in the 1981*action*adventure*The Dogs of War, directed by*John Irvin. He surprisedmany critics and filmgoers with his intricate tap-dancing striptease in*Herbert Ross's musical*Pennies from Heaven*(1981). In 1982, he played a socially awkward but gifted theater actor in the film adaptation of*Kurt Vonnegut Jr.'s*short story*Who Am I This Time?*opposite*Susan Sarandon. Walken then played schoolteacher-turned-psychic*Johnny Smith*in*David Cronenberg's 1983*adaptationof*Stephen King's*The Dead Zone. That same year, Walken also starred in*Brainstormalongside*Natalie Wood*and (in a minor role) his wife,*Georgianne.
In 1985, Walken played *advertiser censored*James Bond*villain,*Max Zorin, in*A View to a Kill,*Roger Moore's last appearance as Bond. Walken dyed his hair blond to befit Zorin's origins as *advertiser censored*Naziexperiment."
Walken is one of those actors who doesn't mind not working if a script does not suit him. He's famous for turning scripts down, particularly if he thinks a part was written with only him in mind. He has always been a home-body, and prefers to stay there when not working. He also does not live in Hollywood. I have always had the sense that Hollywood had little sway over how he lives his life. He's also been married to the same woman since 1969. They do not have children - only a rescued cat. Again, he is not like a lot of Hollywood, and I doubt he could have been strong armed.
The captain of the boat has said he was asleep. Walken has said that he was asleep. The narrative from these two men, who likely had never met prior to that weekend, match, which leads me to believe they are telling the truth.
What I said to my husband this morning is that I do think if Walken had not been passed out, that evening would have ended differently. Wagner held no sway over Walken, as he did over the captain. They did not seem to care for each other. Walken had no dog in this fight. So had he been awake, I feel certain he would have insisted harbor patrol be called and flood lights turned on. With both the captain and Walken insisting on this, Wagner would have been overruled.
Natalie would be alive and Hart to Hart would have come to an abrupt end as the world discovered Wagner had beat the hell out of miss Natalie. Walken would have come out a hero. Wagner would have disappeared into drunkenness and probably be dead by now. Natasha WOOD would have had a career in film as opposed to Natasha Wagner. Courtney would be a bit more put together, hopefully having gained a decent step dad somewhere along the way. Katie may not have turned out as well as she has, however, with her father exposed and disgraced unless other people stepped up in her life.
Anyone have a time machine so we can go back to 1981 and pour coffee and uppers down Walken's throat? This has got to haunt him.
But I feel his life went better than the captain's in terms of guilt because Walken can only think what might have been if he had been awake, while the captain was awake and had the opportunity to do the right thing, or if he didn't have the balls to, to wake Walken and ask him to help do the right thing. The captain knows that his decisions could have saved Natalie.
That said, of course Wagner is ultimately responsible. Still, how could the captain not at least go wake Walken for back-up? Even if he believed Natalie was just being left out there to teach her a lesson and was not going to die, what a betrayal to her, knowing as he did her fear of water.
Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk
