Robert Wagner Confides ‘Never Shared’ Details About Natalie Wood’s 1981 Death to Wife Jill St. John

Natalie Wood tragically died more than 44 years ago — but an insider says the memories of that fateful day continue to haunt then-husband Robert Wagner.

According to the insider, the burden has grown “too heavy to carry alone” with age, so the 96-year-old’s been confiding in current wife Jill St. John about his side of the fatal tale.

“Robert has spent decades refusing to discuss that night in any meaningful detail with anyone,” the insider tells the National Enquirer. “Jill is the one exception. She’s the only person he trusts completely.”

The Hart to Hart alum wed the Bond girl, now 85, roughly eight years after his first spouse drowned at age 43 during a 1981 yacht excursion.

Initially ruled an accident, the case got reopened in 2011 amid tales of excessive drinking and a nasty fight between the couple.

Wagner, who has long denied any wrongdoing, was cleared by investigators in 2022.

“Jill has always believed in Robert’s innocence. If she had any doubts whatsoever, she never would have dated him, let alone married him,” says the insider. “He told her his version of events from the start, but as time has gone by he’s opened up more and more about what happened and the scars it’s left.”

Last November, the Austin Powers star marked the anniversary of the West Side Story icon’s death with an emotional Instagram post.

“There are things he’s told Jill that he’s never shared with anyone else and never intends to,” continues Enquirer‘s insider. “In a lot of ways, she’s been like a therapist for Robert, and she’s become the keeper of his deepest secrets.”