To Kill a Mockingbird Star on Working With Robert Duvall: ‘He Was Perfect’

Robert Duvall, who passed away on Sunday at the age of 95, shot to stardom with his role in The Godfather. However, before that, the actor made a small but memorable appearance in Robert Mulligan’s iconic To Kill a Mockingbird. Following the actor’s death, Mary Badham, who played Scout in the 1962 film, spoke about Duvall.

Mary Badham says Robert Duvall ‘was perfect’ for his To Kill a Mockingbird role

Robert Duvall played a memorable role in To Kill A Mockingbird, even if it wasn’t a huge part. He took on the role of Arthur “Boo” Radley, a reclusive figure, who ends up saving Jem (Phillip Alford) and Scout (Mary Badham), Aticus Finch’s children.

Badham was only 10 years old at the time she shared the screen with Duvall, but there were some things that she still remembered clearly about working with the iconic actor. “We really didn’t know each other very well at all,” Badham recalled to The Hollywood Reporter. “We only had one day to work together, maybe two. Mr. [Robert] Mulligan, who was a brilliant director, held us from seeing each other until the scene at the door,” she added.

The 73-year-old actress remarked, “It was really easy to believe him as Boo — as a child, I was able to just kind of live in my imagination — and he was perfect for the role.” She further recalled running into Duvall on the last day of the shoot when the actor was finally out of character.

“He was sitting on a bunch of pallets by the back door where I had to go off the soundstage to go to the schoolroom, and he goes, ‘Aren’t you gonna say hey to Boo?’ I looked over at this man, and I had no idea who he was!”

Badham further recalled that Duvall was first introduced to Mulligan and producer Alan J. Pakula when he arrived on the set. “They [the crew] took Bob [Duvall] and made him up in the makeup and the hair and the costume and everything, and they put him on the soundstage under a single lightbulb,” she recalled. “And then they had Bob [Mulligan] come in and turn on the light, and it was like, ‘There’s Boo! That’s him!'” she exclaimed.

“He was a very good actor, and I admired his work,” she concluded. Duvall went on to star in several major roles in the decades that followed. Some of his notable films include Apocalypse Now, True Confessions, Deep Impact, Crazy Heart, Days of Thunder, Jack Reacher, and Hustle.

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