Now Davern says he wasn’t telling the whole truth.
During the investigation into Natalie’s death Dennis Davern, who was captaining their yacht, backed up everything R.J. and Christopher Walken said.
Then Davern changed his story. “Goodbye Natalie, Goodbye Splendour” is the result of a decades-long investigation by journalist Marti Rulli and Dennis Davern.
According to his book, Davern, Wood, and Walken spent hours that day at a bar on Catalina Island. Christoper and Natalie were flirting. When her husband, R.J. showed up, he was fuming. The four had dinner, drinking champagne, two bottles of wine, and cocktails. At one point, Wood or Walken threw a glass at the wall..
That night, Davern said Walken left to go to his own room. Natalie left for her state room, with Wagner following, and Davern heard a loud quarrel on the deck. Then “everything went silent.” He found Wagner alone on deck, saying, “Natalie is missing.” Wagner asked Davern to start looking for her.
When his search was unsuccessful, Davern said Wagner told him, “The dinghy is missing too.” He claims Wagner didn’t want to attract bad publicity and refused to turn on the boat’s flood lights. He says Wagner delayed calling for help and did not make the first call to shore until 1:30 a.m.
In 2011, when the investigation into his former co-star Natalie Wood’s death was reopened, Christopher hired a lawyer though he has never been considered a suspect.
“What happened that night only she knows, because she was alone. She had gone to bed before us, and her room was at the back. A dinghy was bouncing against the side of the boat, and I think she went out to move it. There was a ski ramp that was partially in the water. It was slippery—I had walked on it myself. She had told me she couldn’t swim; in fact, they had to cut a swimming scene from [Brainstorm]. She was probably half asleep, and she was wearing a coat.”
Christopher Walken, September, 1997, Playboy Magazine
Lana Wood and Davern were both asking questions. The investigation was reopened in 2011 and in 2018, in response to public urging, the case was reclassified as “suspicious” death.
An HBO documentary by Natalie’s daughter, Natasha Gregson Wagner, reignited interest in the case. However Natasha believes in R.J. ‘s innocence as does her sister, Courtney.
In 2013, Wagner released a statement through his attorney, Blair Berk: “Mr. Wagner has fully cooperated over the last 30 years in the investigation of the accidental drowning of his wife in 1981. Mr. Wagner has been interviewed on multiple occasions by the Los Angeles sheriff’s department and answered every single question asked of him by detectives during those interviews.”
Now, in 2021, Lana Wood has continued her investigation in a new book, “Little Sister: My Investigation into the Mysterious Death of Natalie Wood.” She remains dubious about the official story.
But more than likely, Wagner will never have to answer any questions about Natalie’s death ever again.