Ann-Margret’s performance in the movie Tommy is widely regarded as one of her most iconic and memorable roles. Tommy is a 1975 British musical film directed by Ken Russell, based on The Who’s rock opera album of the same name. In the movie, Ann-Margret portrayed the character of Nora Walker, the mother of the titular character, Tommy, and delivered a powerful and emotionally-charged performance, effectively capturing the complex emotions of a mother who is desperate to connect with her son who became deaf, dumb, and blind after a traumatic childhood experience.
The film garnered wide and critical acclaim as well as numerous accolades. Ann-Margret was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress and won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy for her role in the film. However, her sterling performance in the movie came at a price that left a permanent mark.
Ann-Margret says that she suffered an injury during the production of ‘Tommy’
During a recent interview conducted by The Hollywood Reporter, the actress shared that she scarred her left hand due to her energetic performance in the movie. “When I threw the champagne bottle into the television set, there was all this jagged glass,” she admitted to the news outlet. “All of the soap bubbles were coming up and I came forward, whipping my hand back and forth. Whoopsie daisy! The redness of the blood was really scary.”
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“It was on a Saturday, actually, and then we had to come back there on Monday. The smell of all the beans [was everywhere]. And I noticed that the crew was wearing hip boots because of all the stuff that was on the ground. It was quite interesting. I was the only one with no hip boots,” she added.
Ann-Margret reveals that she had 27 stitches after the accident
While paying her tribute to director Ken Russell, who passed away in November 2011 at the age of 84, the 82-year-old recounted the incident. She reminisced about how the director and his team promptly covered her with towels upon realizing that the soap suds had turned red due to her injury.
Ann-Margaret further stated that she was eventually rushed to the hospital, where she got treatment for the injury. “Here I come into the hospital, looking like a drowned person in this silver knit shrinking catsuit with blood all over. There were 27 stitches,” she noted. “I’ve never done a movie like that before or since. But the whole experience was wonderful.”