Shelley Duvall on her "exploitative" 2016 interview with Dr. Phil: "I found out the kind of person he is the hard way"

The Hollywood Reporter

Dr. Phil McGraw was accused of exploiting Duvall’s untreated mental illness in the 2016 interview, which remained her last until The Hollywood Reporter recently caught up with the reclusive actress near her Texas home. Duvall grew "visibly distressed" at the mention of Dr. Phil's name during the recent interview. "My mother didn't like him, either," said Duvall. "A lot of people, like Dan (Gilroy, her partner), said, 'You shouldn't have done that, Shelley.'" After the broadcast was met with backlash, Phil McGraw made repeated attempts at contacting Duvall: "He started calling my mother," said Duvall. "She told him, 'Don't call my daughter anymore.' But he started calling my mother all the time trying to get her to let me talk to him again." A spokesperson for the Dr. Phil show replies: "We view every Dr. Phil episode, including Miss Duvall and her struggle with mental illness, as an opportunity to share relatable, useful information and perspective with our audiences. We don't attach the stigma associated with mental illness which many do. With no one else offering help, our goal was to document the struggle and bring amazing resources to change her trajectory as we have for so many over 19 years. Unfortunately, she declined our initial offer for inpatient treatment that would have included full physical and mental evaluations, giving her a chance to privately manage her challenges. After many months of follow-up, in collaboration with her mother, she ultimately refused assistance. We were of course very disappointed, but those offers for help remain open today."