Robert Wagner, 96, poses with Natalie Wood's lookalike daughter Natasha... as 45th anniversary of Hollywood icon's drowning approaches

Robert Wagner posed for a rare snap with Natalie Wood's lookalike daughter Natasha recently – weeks before the 45th anniversary of the Hollywood actress' mysterious drowning.

Wagner, 96, looked delighted as he smiled for the candid photo with stepdaughter Natasha Gregson Wagner to mark her 56th birthday last month – with fans left stunned by the brunette beauty's resemblance to the tragic actress.

Wagner wrote: 'Please join me in wishing a very Happy Birthday to my wonderful daughter, Natasha. 

'Jill [St John -Wagner's wife] and I are so proud of the woman you are and the joy, laughter, and love you bring into our lives. We love you and wish you the happiest of birthdays.'

Wagner became the guardian of Natasha, whose father is the late producer Richard Gregson, after her mother's death in 1981 aged 43.

Fans quickly remarked on how much Natasha resembles her movie icon mother, writing, 'Natasha has the same delicacy of her mother. She is lovely. Happy Birthday sharing it with those that love you...

Robert Wagner posed for a rare snap with Natalie Wood's lookalike daughter Natasha recently - weeks before the 45th anniversary of the Hollywood actress' mysterious drowning

'You carry the same breathtaking grace and beauty as your mother, Natalie. Have a wonderful year ahead

'Happy Birthday Natasha. Such a beautiful name. You look so much like your mother

'What a beautiful photo. You look so much like your Mom and of course your Dad is so handsome.'   

Wood famously drowned off the California coast on the night of November 29, 1981, after falling from her husband Wagner's yacht while celebrating Thanksgiving weekend. She was 43. 

The actress had been drinking aboard the Splendour that evening with Wagner, fellow actor Christopher Walken and the vessel's captain, Dennis Davern. 

Wagner later revealed he and Walken argued fiercely about Wood's career before the drowning. 

The Oscar-nominated actress made her name as Maria in 1961's West Side Story, and drowned during a production break from her would-be comeback film Brainstorm, starring alongside Walken.

The investigation into her death was reopened in 2011. Wagner was named a person of interest in 2018 after it was revealed there were discrepancies in his version of events and Wood's autopsy discovered bruises on her arms and upper body.

Wagner and Wood are pictured in 1957 - they famously wed twice, from 1957 until 1962, remarrying in 1972

Fans quickly remarked on how much Natasha resembles her movie icon mother - Wood is pictured R in 1964

Wood (center) drowned in 1981 after falling from the yacht the Spendour. She, Wagner (left) and the captain Dennis Davern (right) are pictured aboard the vessel weeks before

Wagner, pictured with Wood in 1980, was named a person of interest in 2018 after the case was reopened, but he was officially cleared in 2022 when it was declared cold

Although the case was declared cold in 2022, meaning Wagner was officially cleared, conspiracy theories have continued to follow him to this day.

Wagner wrote in his memoirs that the theories circulating about why Wood fell off the Splendour were nothing but 'conjecture.'

'Nobody knows,' he maintained. 'There are only two possibilities: Either she was trying to get away from the argument, or she was trying to tie the dinghy. But the bottom line is that nobody knows exactly what happened.'

Wood had remarried Wagner in 1972. They had previously been married from 1957 until 1962. Their daughter Courtney, 52, was born on March 9, 1974. 

She married film producer Gregson in 1969 and welcomed Natasha. They separated when Natasha was ten months old, and later divorced in 1972.

Wagner also shares daughter Katie from his previous marriage to Marshall, which lasted from 1963 until 1971.

Wagner had a big Hollywood career that began in the 1950s with films such as The Happy Years and Teresa. He starred in the 1956 hit film A Kiss Before Dying then was in films like Winning and TV shows such as The Streets Of San Francisco.

But he didn't find big fame until 1979 when he played Jonathan Hart opposite Stefanie Powers on the TV series Hart To Hart.  

He subsequently had success opposite Mike Myers in Austin Powers: International Man Of Mystery in 1997.

Wagner is wed to Jill St John; they tied the knot in 1990 after eight years of courtship.

Natasha has fiercely defended him amid all the speculation.

In her 2020 book, More Than Love, An Intimate Portrait of My Mother, Natalie Wood, she wrote: 'No one in my world questioned my dad's love for my mom or his utter despair at her loss.'

'We can never know with complete certainty how my mother ended up in the water.'

She had been drinking aboard the Splendour that evening with Wagner, Davern and Christopher Walken (Pictured: Wood and Walken in the 1981 film Brainstorm)

Instead the still-grieving daughter has chosen to 'focus on the things I do know - My father would never have harmed my mother or failed to save her if he knew she was in danger,' wrote Natasha, who was just 11 when her mother died.

'And I focus on my love for my mother, my dad, my family,' Natasha stated.

'My mother was not a tragic, doomed person. Her life was devoted to her art, her children, her husband and her heart.'

In December 2023, Wagner posted a photo from his 1957 wedding to the West Side Story actress, expressing his continued love for her. '66 years ago on December 28th 1957, Natalie was my girl and now she was my wife. Happy Anniversary, Nat. More than love.'

The Daily Mail has contacted representatives for Wagner for further comment.