Mariska Hargitay Doc 'My Mom Jayne' Draws Crowd at East Hampton

Actress Mariska Hargitay brought a deeply personal story to the screen for the third time on July 17, with the showing of her debut documentary My Mom Jayne as part of the HamptonsFilm and Guild Hall SummerDocs series. The film, a tender and revealing portrait of her mother, 1950s icon Jayne Mansfield, was shown to a sold-out audience at Guild Hall in East Hampton.

Directed by Hargitay and produced by Trish Adlesic, My Mom Jayne offers an intimate portrait of 1950s actress Jayne Mansfield, through the eyes of her daughter. The film weaves archival footage and personal interviews, while narration from Hargitay pieces together the life of the mother she lost at age three in a tragic 1967 car crash.

During a post-screening Q&A moderated by writer Molly Jong-Fast, Hargitay reflected on the emotional process behind the film.

“This was a labor of love and longing,” she said. “It was a search for the mother I never really knew, and a reclaiming of her story, and my own.”

The film touches on pivotal family revelations, including Hargitay discovering that Las Vegas entertainer Nelson Sardelli is her biological father, something she kept private for decades. “To see what I carried for the past 30 years become a work of art is so rewarding,” she told the audience. “Understanding the whole story gives me peace, about my mom, about my dad, and about myself.”

But it was the smaller aspects of the film that really resonated with both Hargitay and the audience. The film began with Hargitay’s search for her mothers wooden carved grand piano and concluded with a birthday surprise from her husband, actor Peter Hermann, who tracked down and gifted her the beloved instrument.

“I couldn’t believe it, it’s still like a dream come true,” Hargitay said. “It’s magic.”

My Mom Jayne premiered earlier this year at Cannes Classics and screened at the Tribeca Festival in June. It is now available to stream on HBO Max.