Natalie Wood’s Daughter Describes ‘Dramatic’ Life Facing ‘Painful Things’ 45 Years After Actress’ Death

Natasha Gregson Wagner, the eldest daughter of late actress Natalie Wood, opened up about growing up without her mother, calling herself a “self-preservationist.”

Natasha, 56, was raised by her father, movie producer Richard Gregson, and stepfather, actor Robert Wagner, after the West Side Story star drowned after falling off of Robert’s yacht near California’s Catalina Island in November 1981.

“Luckily I had these two men, Daddy Gregson and Daddy Wagner, who came together and rose to the occasion and completely put me first,” Natasha told Daily Mail on Thursday, October 1. “They got me into therapy right [after my mom died] and I had that same amazing therapist here in Beverly Hills until my twenties.”

“I’m not saying I haven’t had very, very painful things in my life,” she continued. “My life was dramatic in that my parents were famous, and dressed up, glamorous — but in the home, it was all very safe and secure and warm, so I got lucky in that way.”

Natasha — who married former 7th Heaven actor Barry Watson in 2015 — grew up in two different worlds, splitting her time between Wales with her biological father, and Hollywood with Wagner, 96.

“I’ve always had an internal compass. I know how to take care of myself. I know how to prioritize,” she said. “I know what’s right, I know what’s wrong.”

Natasha explained that prior to her death, she and Wood had a strong mother-daughter bond, telling Daily Mail, “We were so completely connected.”

Despite their connection, however, Natasha was a regular 11-year-old girl who was growing more independent when her mother died.

“I went through a lot of feelings … I felt really guilty. Like I should have been a better daughter,” she told ABC News in 2016. “Grief is a weird thing because it’s with you forever. The birth of my daughter [Clover in 2012] has been the best balm.”