Search results
Nov 22, 1989 · A comedy-drama about a group of women who bond at a Louisiana beauty salon. IMDb provides information on the film's cast, plot, reviews, trivia, goofs, quotes, soundtrack and more.
- (64K)
- Comedy, Drama, Romance
- Herbert Ross
- 1989-11-22
Steel Magnolias is a film based on Robert Harling's play about the bond of women in a small-town Southern community. It stars Sally Field, Dolly Parton, Shirley MacLaine, Julia Roberts, and others, and was released in 1989.
- Steel Magnolias Was Based on A True Story
- The Movie Offered Healing For Harling's Family
- The Film Featured Real People
- It Took 10 Days to Write
- It Was Originally A Short Story
- Harling's Sister Inspired More Than Just Shelby
- Other Actresses Were Considered to Play Shelby
- Hollywood Royalty Wanted in
- Harling Wrote Truvy For Another Actress
- It Was Filmed in The Author's Hometown
- GeneratedCaptionsTabForHeroSec
Actor and writer Robert Harling wrote the play based on the true story of his sister, Susan Harling Robinson, who died from complications with diabetes. "She was the only person that had been with me for forever," Harling told Southern Living. "When we lost her, when she died in 1985, I was really in a very bad state with her loss." He began writin...
Harling wanted his mother to leave the set when they filmed Julia Roberts' death scene, but his mother insisted on staying so she could see Julia get up and walk away after the director yelled cut. "I said, 'I can't believe you put yourself through that,'" Harling recalled saying to his mother in an interview with the Huffington Post. "But Julia ha...
The nursesand other hospital staff seen in Julia Roberts' life-support scenes were actual medical professionals who tended to Harling's sister in her final days. Harling himself played the minister who presided over Shelby's wedding and funeral.
"The events that inspired it were so powerful that, after I found the story arena, it just poured out into my typewriter in a 24/7 tsunami of Southernness," Harling told Garden & Gunabout the speedy writing process. "I had no idea what I'd written. I asked the first person I gave it to if it even looked like a play. I wasn't really sure. All I knew...
Harling originally wanted to turn his sister's life into a short story, but it quickly turned into a play because he wanted its Southernness to come out. "I was an actor, so I thought, well, I know what a script looks like, and I know what dialogue looks like," Harling told Southern Living. "I'm just gonna try to write this as a play. So, I did."
When Harling hit a patch of writer's block while working on the play, he channeled his sister for one of its most famous scenes. "I said, 'What would Susan do?' And what Susan would do would be outrageous," he told Today. "She would do something completely inappropriate and totally out of the box." The result is that at Shelby's funeral, when her m...
Originally, Winona Ryder was considered for the part of Shelby, but producers decided she was too young. Instead, they settled on Meg Ryan, who committed to the role before dropping out for a little film called When Harry Met Sally. That's when Julia Roberts stepped in. "We brought her in, and she was Julia Roberts, so she was magic. She just walke...
Elizabeth Taylor went to see Steel Magnolias during its off-Broadway run, and thanks to her rave review, Hollywood legend Bette Davis called up Harling and started a push to be cast in the film as Ouiser. She also thought that Katharine Hepburn could make a fantastic Clairee and Elizabeth Taylor would be perfect as M'Lynn. In an interview with the ...
While Dolly Parton was perfect in the role of beauty shop owner Truvy, the part was actually written for someone else entirely—Margo Martindale. Harling and Martindale were friends in real life, and he wrote the role for her to play. She originated the role of Truvy in the play's off-Broadway debut.
Playwright Robert Harling grew up in Natchitoches, Louisiana, and insisted on filming there. His decision had a huge impact on the town, which can still be felt today. "For everyone who has seen the movie outside of Natchitoches, it is synonymous with the movie," Natchitoches Convention and Tourism Bureau former Executive Director Arlene Gould told...
Learn 17 interesting facts about the 1989 movie Steel Magnolias, based on the play by Robert Harling, who wrote it as a tribute to his sister. Find out who was considered for the roles, who played real people, and how the film became a Southern classic.
- 1 min
Watch the 1989 classic film about six women in a Louisiana beauty salon, starring Julia Roberts, Dolly Parton, and more. Based on a true story, the movie explores life, death, love, and loss with humor and heartbreak.
Watch Sweet Magnolias | Netflix Official Site. Lifelong friends Maddie, Helen and Dana Sue lift each other up as they juggle relationships, family and careers in the small, Southern town of Serenity. Watch trailers & learn more.
People also ask
Is Steel Magnolias on Netflix?
Who are the actors in Steel Magnolias?
Is Sweet Magnolias based on a true story?
Is Steel Magnolias on Fandango?
Find out how and where to watch "Steel Magnolias" on Netflix and Prime Video today - including free options.
- 117 min