With a huge range of brilliant roles, Robin Williams is probably one of the greatest actors of all time. In his career one success followed the next and it is no wonder that the comedy Mrs. Doubtfire is no exception.
Chris Columbus’ film received an Oscar and two Golden Globes, one for Robin Williams for Best Actor. It wasn’t just Williams’ portrayal of a divorced father posing as a nanny, but also his influence on the film’s ending that made the work a groundbreaking success.
Robin Williams didn’t want a happy ending – and thus spoke from the hearts of many of those involved
In Mrs. Doubtfire, Robin Williams plays divorced father Daniel, who misses his children and is not allowed to see them. In order to be close to them, he disguises himself and applies to be a nanny for his ex-wife Miranda (Sally Field). As it must come, he will ultimately be exposed and understandably, Miranda isn’t particularly happy about this hoax. Daniel loses the chance for joint custody, but he is allowed to see the children every afternoon.
The original ending of the script was planned as a happy ending. Accordingly, Daniel and Miranda should have reconciled and the family should have been reunited. This corresponded to the expectations and the common development of family films in the 80s and 90s. However, as Far Out Magazine reports, Robin Williams has expressed against a reconciliation of the characters. He refused to pander to this fantasy and insisted on a more realistic finale for the film. At least the film had a happy ending for Daniel and the children.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Kuz3zve4LE&ab_channel=MacReadBecause of Robin Williams’ efforts, the ending of Mrs. Doubtfire was rewritten
Williams was supported by co-star Sally Field, there both were already divorced and knew the effects on their own children. They did not want to take part in maintaining the facade. Director Chris Columbus also recognized that the finale was the film’s biggest problem. Since Williams refused to film the scenes at all, he actually forced the makers to rewrite the script.