The Ups And Downs Of Natalie Wood's Two Marriages With Robert Wagner

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The Hollywood industry has always been messy, long before pictures were colorized, sitcoms bloomed, and CGI became a thing. As far as relationships went before the internet, the general public only got the scoop on juicy information when one of three things happened: the celebrity in question talked about it, a major life event was inevitably reported, or someone had a big enough reason to come forward. 

When it comes to Robert Wagner and Natalie Wood's relationship, all three points happened at the same time — and not once, but over and over. It turns out that when two massive stars tie the knot at one of the highest points of their respective careers (Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are a modern example), they're bound to be the talk of the town and beyond. Throw in a surprising divorce, another shot at marriage, and a shocking death, and you can see why people continue to talk about Wagner and Wood's ups and downs. 

Natalie Wood (real name Natalie Zacharenko) was born in 1938 to parents who immigrated from Russia. She made her film debut at 4 years old in two movies: an adaptation of John Steinbeck's "The Moon Is Down" and "Happy Land," both directed by Irving Pichel. Wood, whose name was professionally changed for marketing reasons, landed her breakout role aged 9 in the Christmas classic "Miracle on 34th Street" (1947). 

It was sometime around "Miracle on 34th Street" that Wood first laid eyes on Robert Wagner, who was eight years older and, at the time, an unknown wanna-be actor. "I was 10 and he was 18 when I first saw him walking down the hall at [20th] Century Fox," Wood told People in 1976 (via Biography). "I turned to my mother and said, 'I'm going to marry him."

In 1976, during an appearance on "The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson," Wagner explained his early time at 20th Century Fox (and why he was in the hallway in the first place). "I was 18 and I started working as an extra. ..I was there for 12 years. They taught me how to do everything ... I used to do all the screen tests" (via Facebook). 

Natalie Wood's career continued to strengthen as she entered her teenage years. In 1952, she made her TV debut in "Chevron Theatre." Wood then went on to star in "The Pride of the Family" before landing her next big role: Judy in "Rebel Without a Cause" (1955). Her performance, opposite James Dean and Sal Mineo, garnered her first Oscar nomination. 

Robert Wagner had broken into the industry by the early 1950s and was establishing his career. He earned his first lead role in the 1953 film "Beneath the 12-Mile Reef" and starred in Cinemascope projects like "White Feather" (1955) and "Between Heaven and Hell" (1956). 

Wood's childhood crush on Wagner made itself back around in 1956: Wood, freshly 18, and Wagner, who was 26, were set up on a date by 20th Century Fox. The date took place on July 20th, Wood's birthday. Whether coincidental or intentional, the movie poster for "A Kiss Before Dying," which starred Wagner, was released on the same day.

Plenty of royal couples have had short engagements before taking the next step. Although they weren't "royal" in the typical sense, Natalie Wood and Robert Wagner's Hollywood status sure fit the bill in its own way. It's unclear exactly when they got engaged, but based on their wedding day, we know it didn't happen too long after their first date. Wagner reportedly proposed on another date, during which he placed a ring in Wood's champagne glass. 

The duo tied the knot in December 1957; Wood was 19, while Wagner was 27. They got married in Scottsdale, Arizona, at the Scottsdale Methodist Church; according to Salt River Stories, the location was chosen to keep the event intimate and as hidden away as possible from paparazzi. Their wedding reception was held at the Hotel Valley Ho. The hotel still hosts weddings today, although the facility has clearly been modernized. 

Robert Wagner and Natalie Wood had such a great time in Arizona that they missed their originally planned honeymoon in Colorado. Instead, they spent their time in the coastal city of Stuart, Florida. The newlyweds spent time on a yacht — something a little fishy, considering Wood had a documented fear of water. "I had a mean director one time who threw me in the ocean," Wood said in 1977 (via E! News). "I was terrified." Once they got back from their honeymoon, Wood and Wagner's careers continued to advance full-speed ahead. 

Wood starred opposite Frank Sinatra and Tony Curtis in "Kings Go Forth" (1958) and appeared in Elia Kazan's "Splendor in the Grass" (1961). Then, of course, Wood landed two of her most recognized and decorated roles: Maria in "West Side Story" (1961) and Gypsy Rose Lee in "Gypsy" (1962). While Wood enjoyed her successful transition from cute child star to serious adult actor, Wagner landed roles in plenty of movies, too. He starred as Jesse James in "The True Story of Jesse James" (1957) and appeared in "Say One For Me" (1959) alongside Bing Crosby and Debbie Reynolds. 

Wood and Wagner's first time on-screen together was in the movie "All The Fine Young Cannibals" (1960). In an art-imitates-life move, they portrayed two characters who fall in love but marry other people, only to eventually get back together.

During their marriage, there never seemed to be any signs of trouble in paradise for Robert Wagner and Natalie Wood. They attended several high-profile Hollywood events during their heyday, including the Desert Circus Parade in 1957 and the 1960 Producers Guild Dinner. Wood's 21st birthday party in 1959, a surprise hosted by Wagner and Frank Sinatra, was also publicly documented.

Despite how things looked, Wagner and Wood's relationship collapsed by the early 1960s. The pair announced their separation in June 1961 and were officially divorced in April 1962. At the time, rumors circulated that Wood had an affair with Warren Beatty, who also starred in "Splendor in the Grass." According to LA Mag, these rumors were falsely created to boost Wagner's image. 

Wood's younger sister, actor Lana Wood, put forth an entirely different reason for their divorce over the years: their relationship ended, according to her, because Wood allegedly caught Wagner having an affair with another man. Wagner has publicly denied this several times. "I had never seen her that bad. I was asked to leave the room and that something bad happened and that Natalie was leaving R.J. It wasn't until later that she said she caught him with someone," Lana once described in 2011 (via The New Zealand Herald). 

It didn't take long for Robert Wagner and Natalie Wood to move on with other people after their divorce — in Wagner's case, he started to make moves during the divorce, not after. In 1961, Wagner struck up a romance with actor Marion Marshall. They married in 1963, separated in 1970, and divorced in October 1971. "Remembering my dear 2nd wife Marion Marshall on her heavenly birthday today," Wagner posted on Instagram in June 2026; Marshall died in September 2018.

As for Wood, she dated several Hollywood stars after her divorce from Wagner: short-lived boyfriends included Michael Caine and the aforementioned Warren Beatty. In the mid-1960s, Wood started dating Richard Gregson, a screenwriter and producer. They married in 1969, separated in 1971, and divorced in April 1972. Gregson died in August 2019. 

Wagner and Wood's respective marriages both produced a child. Wagner and Marshall welcomed their daughter, Katie, in May 1964; Wood and Gregson had their own daughter, Natasha, in September 1970. While some nepo babies want nothing to do with fame, Katie and Natasha both ended up in entertainment: Katie is best known as a television personality, while Natasha became an actor in her own right. 

By January 1972, Natalie Wood was single, while Robert Wagner was engaged to Frank Sinatra's daughter, Tina. Things quickly changed for the divorcees when they reconnected — first through phone calls, then through a visit at their former marital home in Palm Springs. In no time at all, Wagner ended his engagement to Tina to rekindle things with Wood. "Friends told me to put on the brakes," Wood reportedly told People (via Biography). 

Why did Wood marry Wagner twice? To make a long story short, circumstances, not a lack of love, were what drove their first marriage into the ground. In 2016, Natasha Gregson Wagner and Manoah Bowman published "Natalie Wood: Reflections on a Legendary Life," which included an undated essay from Wood. "If you love someone and make a commitment to them, the love does not vanish because you have signed a legal document called a divorce paper," she wrote (via People). 

Wood and Wagner remarried in July 1972, roughly six months after they reconnected. According to The New York Times, one of the first organizations to report the nuptials, the pair tied the knot on a yacht off the coast of California, another fact that would prove to be sadly ironic roughly 10 years later. 

As far as we know, the first years of Robert Wagner and Natalie Wood's second marriage passed with little to no issues. Wagner earned his first producer credit for "Madame Sin" (1972), which he also starred in; on Wood's end, she portrayed herself in "The Candidate." In 1973, the couple appeared together in the TV movie "The Affair." 

By the time "The Affair" came out, Wood was pregnant with her and Wagner's first child. Their daughter, Courtney, was born in March 1974. Wagner later reportedly said, "I found Natalie to be a very pulled-together mother, with mature views about life. We decided to have a child, and just before our first anniversary she became pregnant with our miracle baby (Courtney). We were both jubilant, and she turned all of her energies to having our child" (via Instagram). 

Although Courtney was arrested for drug possession in 2012, there's no doubt that both of Wood's daughters grew up to be gorgeous. Today, Courtney lives an ultra-private life with locked-down socials and no public appearances outside of a couple of documentaries. Wagner, on the other hand, is an avid Instagram user (or at the very least, someone updates his account frequently). In March 2026, Wagner posted, "Happy Birthday to my youngest daughter, my moonbeam, Courtney," on Instagram. Courtney responded: "Oh daddy you're the best I love you too much it's crazy xxo."

Robert Wagner and Natalie Wood had their hands full by the time Courtney was born. With three young children between them and not enough hours in the day, the pair only starred in one more project together: an adaptation of Tennessee Williams' "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" (1976). "One of the highlights of all time was working with Wood on a 'Cat on a Hot Tin Roof' ... I loved her very much," Wagner told TC Palm in 2011 (via ABC News). 

While the episode of "Laurence Olivier Presents" received favorable reviews, Wagner's most renowned roles came from two other TV shows: "Switch" (1975 to 1978) and "Hart to Hart" (1979 to 1984). Wagner portrayed the main characters in both: ex-con man Pete T. Ryan in the former, millionaire Jonathan Hart in the latter. "Switch" didn't earn any awards during its three-season run, but "Hart to Hart" took home one Golden Globe award and one People's Choice award. 

Wagner received four consecutive Golden Globe nominations between 1980 and 1984 for "Hart to Hart." In 2026, Wagner and Stefanie Powers, who portrayed his on-screen wife Jennifer Hart, reunited in honor of Wagner's 96th birthday. "When Jonathan and Jennifer reunite, it's always something special," Wagner wrote on Instagram. "Thank you, Stefanie, for the beautiful birthday visit."

While Robert Wagner's career surged after Courtney's birth, Natalie Wood's simmered. She starred in only four films between 1975 and 1980 — which wasn't nothing, but still a drastic decrease compared to the rest of her resume. The movies in question were "Peeper" (1975), "Meteor" (1979), "The Last Married Couple in America" (1980), and "Willie & Phil" (1980). 

During this time, Wood worked more in the TV sector, albeit in mostly smaller roles. Aside from "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof," Wood appeared in one episode of "Switch," one episode of "Hart to Hart," and a miniseries called "From Here to Eternity," for which she won a Golden Globe Award. Her last television film, "The Memory of Eva Ryker," was released in 1980.

Wood never officially retired from acting — her last billed appearance was in "Brainstorm" (1983) — but she seldom worked after Courtney was born to focus on raising her children. "My life has been sort of reversed. I was working when other girls were going to school and when other women were reaching the age when they wanted careers, I was most interested in staying home," Wood reportedly once commented (via Facebook). 

Natalie Wood's death has been a hot topic of discussion since the day it happened. On November 29, 1981, Wood drowned off the coast of California. She was on a yacht with Robert Wagner, actor Christopher Walken, and the ship's captain, Dennis Davern. No one supposedly saw Wood go overboard; therefore, no one knows exactly how she died. 

It later came out that Wood, Wagner, and Walken allegedly argued before she disappeared from the yacht. In 2011, Davern admitted on "TODAY" (via The Hollywood Reporter) that he lied in his initial police statement decades prior; when asked if the argument allegedly led to Wood's death, Davern said "yes." As for Walken, he's always maintained that it's a tragic celeb death that's purely accidental. In 1997, as just one example, Walken told Playboy, "What happened that night only she knows, because she was alone. A dinghy was bouncing against the side of the boat, and I think she went out to move it."

Wagner touched on Wood's death in his 2008 memoir, "Pieces of My Heart," although without any particular revelations. In one memorable section, he speculated: "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" (via People). 

What happened to Robert Wagner after Natalie Wood's death? Relationship-wise, Wagner fell in love again. In February 1982, he struck up a relationship with Jill St. John, another actor who starred in the James Bond film "Diamonds are Forever" (1971). They originally met in the 1950s, when they were both under contract with 20th Century Fox. Wagner and St. John married in 1990 and have been together ever since.

Despite all the controversy Wagner has been wrapped up in since Wood's death — a quick Google search will tell you everything you need to know — that hasn't stopped him from continuing to speak of her fondly, as well as honor her legacy. In July 2026, Wagner celebrated what would've been their 54th wedding anniversary on Instagram. "Happy Anniversary Nat! More Than Love," he wrote alongside an unseen photo of their second wedding. A few days later, Wagner posted another photo for Wood's birthday. She would've turned 88 years old.