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The Independent UK
The Independent UK
Lifestyle
Jacob Stolworthy

Pierce Brosnan shares how Robin Williams made dreaded Mrs Doubtfire scene instantly brilliant

Getty Images

Pierce Brosnan has revealed how Robin Williams saved one of his most dreaded Mrs Doubtfire scenes.

The actors starred together in the 1994 comedy, which was directed by Chris Columbus, with former Bond star Brosnan reflecting on the experience in a new interview.

Discussing his past credits in a recent interview with GQ, Brosnan, who will next be seen in Black Adam, spoke specifically about a scene in the film in which he has a lime lobbed at the back of his head by Williams’s character, Daniel Hillard, while he is carrying a drinks tray.

Hillard does this after Brosnan’s character, Stu, the new boyfriend of his ex-wife (Sally Field), calls him “a loser” under his breath.

Explaining what happened to Stu, Hillard says: “Oh sir, I saw it! Some angry member of the kitchen staff – did you not tip them? Oh, the terrorist, they ran that way; it was a run-by fruiting.”

Watching the clip as part of the interview, Brosnan recalled: “I get the beers, I’m walking back and thinking, ‘This is going to take forever – forever – to hit me on the head.’ The first one missed. And the second one is history.”

He also revealed that the “run-by fruiting” line was ad-libbed, stating: “It wasn’t in the script.”

Robin Williams improvised funny ‘Mrs Doubtfire’ line (Touchstne Pictures)

Mrs Doubtfire almost featured two scenes that were eventually removed as they were considered too heartbreaking for families watching the film together.

One scene would have shown Hillard’s daughter, Lydia (Lisa Jakub), participating in a spelling bee before being distracted by her warring parents bickering in the crowd, while a second depicted a brutal argument between the parents through the eyes of their children.

Brosnan will next be seen starring opposite Dwayne Johnson in DC film Black Adam, which will be released on 21 October.

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