Natalie Wood deserves more than the legacy we have given her.

Natalie Wood sits at a table with her publicist, business manager, and agent, as well as six or more men in suits. The image appeared in a spread in the December 1963 issue of Life magazine (opens in new tab) and drew attention to Wood's selection as a "shrewd businesswoman." It is a snapshot of the woman at the center of the new HBO documentary "Natalie Wood: What Remains Behind," which airs tonight. Wood's eldest daughter, Natasha Gregson Wagner, tells Marie Claire, " This is the mom I know."

Wood is a singular figure in Hollywood stardom: at age 4, she was discovered on the streets of her Northern California hometown and plucked from obscurity for an ice cream commercial; at age 8, her cheek charm point in "Miracle on 34th Street" At 16, she wowed audiences in "Rebel Without a Cause" opposite James Dean; at 23, she played the lead in "West Side Story"; by 25, she had three Academy Award nominations; by 1983, she had won the Best Actress Oscar for "The Last of Us"; by 1985, she had won the Best Actress Oscar for "The Last of Us.

But in 1981, at age 43, Wood's life was tragically cut short when she accidentally drowned off Catalina Island. Since then, the press and fans have been haunted by rumors and allegations surrounding her untimely death, and suspected foul play, as her husband, actor Robert Wagner, and friend Christopher Walken were on board the boat that night.

With the help of Gregson Wagner, the HBO special, directed by Laurent Bouzereau, would ultimately leave Wood's death at the bottom of the water where it happened. The goal is to fix the legacy in Hollywood of the actress who was an assertive, courageous, charismatic, and pioneering career woman, wife, and mother.

Gregson Wagner has kept her upbringing as the child of a movie star mostly secret so far, except for the release of a coffee table book and a commemorative perfume called "Natalie" (scented with gardenia, her mother's favorite scent). But after she became a mother herself, she explains, she wanted to make a documentary that would examine Wood's life from an "intellectual perspective" and "no made-up nonsense." So she and Bouzereau used home movies, personal photos, and interviews with co-stars and friends such as Robert Redford and Mia Farrow to show the unseen aspects of Wood's career. The purpose was to prove that Wood's influence went far beyond her acting talent, her gorgeous face, and the men she dated. And especially that her life more than defined her death. [Gregson Wagner says it's "outrageous" that he had to endure the reopening of the case and media speculation. 'I've had to do that for so long that it's easy to detach from those things. It's a muscle that I grew unknowingly as a child."

The documentary focuses on how Wood has tirelessly fought back against the female-disadvantaged studio system she has been beholden to for almost her entire life. Not content to be a cog in the Hollywood machine (opens in new tab), she took on Jack Warner, the head of Warner Bros. Studios. Wood, who was only 20 years old, went on strike because Warner did not accept her demand that she choose at least one film a year to appear in. (At the time, it was common for producers to specify which films an actor would appear in, regardless of his or her fame.) ) "West Side Story" became the first film Wood chose for herself.

She proved to be ahead of her time by confronting the industry over equal pay and mental health advocacy. In The Great Race (1965), in which she played a journalist-turned-car racer fighting for the advancement of women, she found herself paid less than her co-stars Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis. So Wood demanded just compensation, and even more so, just treatment on the set. It was not just about money. For Wood, it was a question of control.

Says Gregson Wagner. "After she made such a big deal about wanting equal pay, she has since made sure she always gets points (a percentage of the film's profits) ...... because she knew that was the way to make real money. She also included in her contract that she would be given time off to see a therapist."

Buzereau adds: "Word got around about Natalie Wood. Several of the cast members of West Side Story complained about the heat [on the set], and when they went to Natalie, she immediately turned on the air conditioning. It was very interesting to talk to Natalie's friends and family and find little stories that reflected how nurturing she was." The director explains that this is why he wasn't interested in an "Old Hollywood" style documentary. Instead, he opted for a more intimate portrait of the icon.

Wood's underlying principle is that she is an autobiographical artist. She starred in films that tackled topics such as abortion (1963's Love with the Proper Stranger) and swing (1969's Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice). He also appeared in television and TV movie events at a time when it was considered career suicide for film actors.

Wood made it a point to champion and support other creators. She was the one who fought hard to get Robert Redford, then an unknown stage actor, to co-star in Inside Daisy Clover. And it was especially those with marginalized voices that she sought to help on her platform: she met openly gay playwright Mart Crowley in "Splendor on the Prairie" and hired him as her assistant. The script, about a group of gay men in the 1960s, was unprecedented at the time. (It was performed off-Broadway in 1968, made into a film in 1970, and revived on Broadway in 2018.) A TV dramatization is currently underway, directed by Ryan Murphy (opens in new tab).)

"It's amazing to see the ripple effect of everything she touched, everything she did," says Bouzereau.

"You can still feel it today in so many ways, and all of those stories reflect how real she was."

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