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NEED TO KNOW
Natalie Wood drowned in November 1981 while on a boat trip to California's Catalina Island
Her husband, Robert "R.J." Wagner, was cleared of involvement in 2022 after the case was reopened a decade prior
Wood's case remains open and unsolved
Natalie Wood's death at 43 years old has sparked decades of speculation, with many still wondering what truly happened the night she drowned.
TheRebel Without a Causestar died on a boat trip to California's Catalina Island in November 1981. On Thanksgiving weekend that year, Wood and Wagner set sail on their 60-foot yacht, theSplendour, alongside Wood'sBrainstormcostarChristopher Walkenand their longtime skipper, Dennis Davern.
While the actress' death was initially ruled an "accidental drowning," the case would continue to stir controversy. In 2011, Davern went to authorities with information about an alleged fight between Wood and Wagner moments before her death — details he had previously withheld — and the investigation was officially reopened.
At one point, Wagner was named "more of a person of interest" in relation to Wood's death. However, in May 2022, the actor was cleared of involvement by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.
"All leads in the Natalie Wood case have been exhausted, and the case remains an open, unsolved case," Lieutenant Hugo Reynaga toldPage Sixat the time. "If additional leads surface in the future, which have not already been investigated, the case will be reassigned to a detective to investigate the new leads."
So, how did Natalie Wood die? Here are all the details of the star's death and the investigation into its cause.
How did Natalie Wood die?
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Following Wood's death in 1981, the L.A. coroner, Dr. Thomas Noguchi, initially ruled that she died due to an "accidental drowning."
On the day of her death, Wood, Wagner and Walken had dinner and drinks on land and returned to the yacht around 10 p.m., per Wagner's 2008 memoir,Pieces of My Heart. Shortly after, Wagner allegedly had a confrontation with Walken after he made comments about Wood's career. While there are conflicting reports of Wood's final moments, Wagner said it was during this time that she disappeared.
In Wagner's memoir, he wrote that he had seen Wood go to bed prior to the argument. However, when he returned to their bedroom later that night, she was nowhere to be found and he soon discovered that the yacht's dinghy was also missing. Although it would have been out of character for Wood to take the dinghy out so late at night, Wagner wrote that he initially figured she had headed to land to get away from the fighting.
InPieces of My Heart, Wagner wrote that he alerted Davern and then called for the shore boat to take him to the island. When Wagner didn't find Wood or the dinghy near the dock, Davern radioed for help from theBaywatch, a private coast patrol, at around 1:30 a.m. Two hours later, Wagner called the Coast Guard.
After an extensive search of the boat, the Coast Guard began search and rescue. After hours of searching, the dinghy was found at 5:30 a.m. in an isolated cove. The boat was in neutral and turned off — and Wood was not on board.
Two hours later, Wood's body was discovered. She was wearing a red parka over a nightgown and had bruising on her arms and legs as well as an abrasion on her cheek. She also had a blood alcohol content of 0.14%.
In a press conference, Dr. Noguchi concluded that after accidentally falling into the water, Wood had attempted to board the dinghy, perVanity Fair. Based on fingernail scratch marks on the inflatable boat's side, he believed she had clung onto its side, but was weighed down by her waterlogged parka and was unable to pull herself up. She stayed afloat for as long as possible until, as Noguchi theorized, overcome by exhaustion and hypothermia, she drowned.
How old was Natalie Wood when she died?
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Wood was 43 years old when her body was discovered on the morning of Nov. 29, 1981. She was floating in a cove off the coast of California's Catalina Island, about a mile away from her yacht.
Although the actress was semi-retired in 1981, she continued taking on smaller roles, often collaborating with Wagner. The couple acted alongside each other inSwitchandHart to Hartin the years leading up to her death.
When Wood died, she was near the end of filming the science fiction movieBrainstorm. After her death, the ending of the film was re-written and Wood's younger sister Lana stood in for some of her last scenes.
Brainstormcame out two years after Wood's death and was dedicated to her memory.
What happened in Natalie Wood's final moments?
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Hours before her death, witnesses said the group was intoxicated during dinner on the island, so the restaurant manager warned the harbormaster, perCBS News. Late in the evening, Wagner wrote in his book that he smashed a wine bottle in front of Walken during a fight.
Upset, Wood allegedly retreated to their room, and Wagner followed, beginning a fight between the couple.
Marilyn Wayne, a woman who came forward in 2011, was on a boat with her boyfriend and son 50 feet away from theSplendour. She told detectives that she had heard the alleged altercation — and a woman screaming for help, perThe Hollywood Reporter. Wayne claimed that she called harbor patrol and no one answered.
"'Help me, someone please help me, I'm drowning' we heard repeatedly. Alarmed, I called out to my son, who also heard the cries, and looked at his new digital watch: it was just minutes after 11:00 p.m.," Wayne claimed, adding that she later heard a "man's voice slurred, and in aggravated tone, say something to the effect of, 'Oh, hold on, we're coming to get you.' "
She continued, "Not long after, the cries for help subsided, but we heard the cries for up to 15 minutes."
What do those on board theSplendourbelieve happened to Natalie Wood?
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In his memoir, Wagner wrote that he had thought about the final moments of Wood's life for decades. He believes that her death was an accident and she slipped off the boat while attempting to get on or to tie up the dinghy.
Wagner explained that while he was hashing out his argument with Walken, Wood may have heard the dinghy banging against the boat outside of her window. He believes she went outside in the hopes of tying it tighter to stop the noise but accidentally slipped on the swim step, hitting her head and falling unconscious before ending up in the water.
"But it's all conjecture. Nobody knows. There are only two possibilities: either she was trying to get away from the argument, or she was trying to tie the dinghy. But the bottom line is that nobody knows exactly what happened," Wagner wrote.
While Walken has not often spoken out about that night, he told PEOPLE in 1986 that he believed Wood's death was an accident. "I don't know what happened. She slipped and fell in the water. I was in bed then. It was a terrible thing," he said.
Meanwhile, despite Davern's prior statements that Wood's death was an accident, the skipper later claimed in his 2006 bookGoodbye Natalie, Goodbye Splendourthat he believed Wagner was involved in Wood's death.
What happened during the investigation surrounding Natalie Wood's death?
While the initial investigation around Wood's death concluded it was an accident, over the years, Davern has unsuccessfully tried to get authorities to give the case another look. In November 2011, the case was reopened after he came forward with information he had shared in his book but had previously withheld from investigators.
"I made some terrible decisions and mistakes. I did lie on a report several years ago. I made mistakes by not telling the honest truth in a police report," Davern claimed onToday.
Over the next few months, authorities traveled to inspect theSplendourand speak with witnesses. In August 2012, less than a year into the renewed inquiry, the coroner's office decided to amend Wood's death certificate. The cause of death was changed from accidental drowning to "drowning and other undetermined factors," noting that the circumstances surrounding how Wood ended up in the water are "not clearly established."
Then, in 2013, the coroner's report was updated to reflect that Wood's bodily injuries may have occurred prior to her drowning.
In 2018, two new people came forward claiming to be witnesses, saying they had seen Wagner and Wood on the back of the yacht on the night of her death. Shortly after, L.A. County Sheriff's Department Lieutenant John Corina told CBS'48 Hoursthat Wagner was a "more of a person of interest" in the case.
"This is a suspicious death investigation. This is not a murder investigation," Corina said during a press conference. "We've interviewed a lot of new people — near the island, near the boat, people who had knowledge about the couple and what was going on that weekend. We're closer to understanding what happened."
Four years later, Wagner was cleared of involvement in the case by the L.A. County Sheriff's Department. He has long denied having any involvement in her death.
What has Natalie Wood's family said about her death?
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Wood's daughterNatasha, whom she welcomed with film producer Richard Gregson and was raised by Wagner,believes that her mother's death was an accident.
"They were getting ready to go on the boat. I was hugging her and telling her I loved her and to have a great trip. She had an angora sweater on and it was very soft. That's my last memory of her," Natasha told PEOPLE in 2016.
In her 2020 documentaryNatalie Wood: What Remains Behind, Natasha shares why she believes Wagner had nothing to do with her mother's death.
"It's outrageous and completely unacceptable that others have created this narrative about my dad and the night my mom died," Natasha said. "I know that if my mom had been in any kind of distress he would have given his life for her. I know that as well as I know my name."
Wood and Wagner's younger daughter Courtney has expressed similar sentiments about her father, telling PEOPLE that the "terrible things" said about Wagner are very upsetting.
"I wasfurious at the accusations being said about him, it felt incredibly disrespectful," she told PEOPLE in April 2020. "I love him so deeply so and it has gone on for so long that I still can't believe they actually write such untrue things."
However, Wood's sister Lana has long believed that her death was not an accident. She published her bookLittle Sister: My Investigation into the Mysterious Death of Natalie Woodin 2021.
"I want [Wagner] to tell the truth," Lana said onMegyn Kelly Todayin July 2018. "I want him to be a man and own what has happened and to be strong enough to do that."
What is Natalie Wood's legacy?
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While Wood had a prolific career in Hollywood, much ofher legacy has been "overshadowed" by the mysterysurrounding her death, according to Natasha. That's why she produced her 2020 documentaryNatalie Wood: What Remains Behind.
"The day my mom died, my entire world was shattered. Since then, there's been so much focus on how she died that it's overshadowed who she was as a person," Natasha said in the film.
In both the documentary and her memoirMore Than Love, Natasha characterized her mother as someone who wanted to be more than a movie star, saying, "She was human, she was an artist who struggled and she was brave and she was happy."
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