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Sally Field says filming the funeral scene in Steel Magnolias was emotionally taxing for the cast
“It takes a part of your soul. It costs you. It cost every one of us,” she told Parade
The cast of Steel Magnolias formed a close bond while working on the 1989 film about friendship and resilience
The funeral scene in Steel Magnolias was as devastating for Sally Field as it was for audiences.
In an interview with Parade, the Oscar winner, 79, recalled the emotional impact that scene had on her and the cast of the 1989 movie.
When filming the devastating funeral scene, Field noted, “You don’t just think of it as ‘Oh, it’s just another day of the office.’ ”
“It takes a part of your soul. It costs you. It cost every one of us. And we get a great deal of return from it because we learn from it,” she shared. “We were certainly bonded in it, holding each other’s hands the whole time. But it’s not just a job.”
Sally Field and Julia Roberts in ‘Steel Magnolias’
Credit: Zade Rosenthal/Tri-Star/Kobal/Shutterstock
In the film, Julia Roberts plays Field’s daughter, Shelby, a headstrong and sometimes stubborn young woman living with type 1 diabetes, who ultimately dies shortly after giving birth to her child due to complications.
The emotional funeral scene follows Shelby’s death, with Field’s character, M’Lynn, pacing through a graveyard processing her loss, while going through the five stages of grief.
“I want to know why!” she first cries out in the scene. “No, it’s not supposed to happen this way. I’m supposed to go first,” before turning to anger and shouting, “I just want to hit something, hit it hard!”
‘Steel Magnolias’ actresses Julia Roberts, Sally Field, Shirley MacClaine, Dolly Parton, and Daryl Hannah pose for a portrait in October 1989
Credit: Aaron Rapoport/Corbis/Getty
Field told Parade that she “read with a whole lot of actors” for Roberts’ role.
“Julia had not done very much. I read with a lot of much more established actors, and after I read with Julia, I said, ‘We’re done. We’re done. There she is,'” she recalled.
Steel Magnolias, based on Robert Harling’s 1987 play, focused on friendship and resilience among a tight-knit group of Southern women.
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The ensemble cast also included Shirley MacLaine, Dolly Parton, Daryl Hannah and Olympia Dukakis.
Despite the emotionally taxing storylines, Field noted that they all “had a wonderful time together.”
“We adored each other, we fought with each other, we cared for each other, and we would get together on the weekends and play games. It was a once-in-a-lifetime thing,” Field shared.
Steel Magnolias premiered on Nov. 5, 1989, opening in theaters later that month. Among the accolades it earned were a BAFTA nomination for MacLaine and an Oscar nomination for Roberts.
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