Natasha Richardson will always be the Elizabeth James to Dennis Quaid’s Nick Parker.
Quaid, 70, took a look back at some of his most iconic photos in an exclusive interview with Us Weekly, including a sweet snap of himself and Richardson at the 1998 London premiere of their beloved film, The Parent Trap.
“The first thing I notice besides the queen is Natasha Richardson. It chokes me up because she was such a beautiful person,” Quaid emotionally told Us while reflecting on meeting Queen Elizabeth II with his late costar. “She and Liam [Neeson] had two beautiful boys.”
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Richardson and Neeson, 71, were married from 1994 to 2009 and shared sons Micheál, 28, and Daniel 27. The actress died at age 45 in 2009 after sustaining a traumatic brain injury during a skiing accident.
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While fans of The Parent Trap would love to see Quaid and the film’s original cast reunite for a sequel, he told Us that doing a second film without Richardson wouldn’t feel right. “We can’t make a Parent Trap 2, that’s for sure, because nobody could ever replace her,” he explained. “She was a special human being.”
He and Richardson stood next to each other while meeting Queen Elizabeth at the film’s London premiere, which the late monarch attended. Quaid sported a classic black tux, bow tie and white dress shirt at the event, which Richardson complimented in a white short-sleeved dress with lace accents. In true ‘90s fashion, she accessorized her hair with bejewel butterfly clips. Elizabeth, for her part, donned a glittering gold gown with a lacy top and silk bottom.
Dennis Quaid and Natasha Richardson Getty Images
While meeting the royal was an honor for Quaid, he admitted to not feeling his best at the time. “I had my first cold sore since I was 12 years old, [it] may have been the stress, and I haven’t had one since,” he told Us. “But it was right here, and it just really sprung.”
Luckily, his cold sore didn’t stop him from having a pleasant encounter with Elizabeth, who died at age 96 in September 2022. “The Queen of England, she reminds me of my mom,” he said. “That’s a really great picture.”
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Quaid attended the film’s U.K. premiere with ex-wife Meg Ryan. Quaid shares son Jack, 31, with Ryan, 62, as well as 16-year-old twins, Thomas and Zoe, with ex-wife Kimberly Buffington.
While Quaid spends a lot of time with his family, he couldn’t get his kids to join him on the golf course while filming his new movie, The Long Game. “[Zoe is] an athlete and she plays volleyball and she’s great at any sport she’s ever picked up. And I think maybe now’s the time to pounce. She’s 16,” he shared with Us. “And my son, too. I’d like to him into it and have those father/son moments. He’s a good athlete. They’re both really good athletes.”
Queen Elizabeth II, Natasha Richardson and Dennis Quaid Ken Goff/Getty Images
Quaid stars as Frank Mitchell in The Long Game, which follows the true story of a group of Mexican-American caddies as they overcome segregation and go on to become golf champions. The film, which hit theaters on April 12, marks the first release from Quaid’s production company, Bonniedale, which he named after his mother’s middle name.
“I don’t think people go to the movies to see things. They go to feel things. And there is hope in this film,” he said of the film. “I want them to be entertained, number one, and I want them to see themselves when they were kids, or whatever, because everybody has an experience that they can relate to in this movie.”
The Long Game is in theaters now.
With reporting by Christina Garibaldi
Us Weekly
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