As Titanic began production, there was an immediate chemistry between Barbara and myself—a lot of looks across the room. At this point Barbara Stanwyck was a legendary actress, universally respected for her level of craft and integrity. She also had the most valuable thing a performer can have: good taste. Besides a long list of successful bread-and-butter pictures, Barbara had made genuine classics for great directors: The Bitter Tea of General Yen and Meet John Doe for Frank Capra, Stella Dallas for King Vidor, The Lady Eve for Preston Sturges, Ball of Fire for Howard Hawks, and Double Indemnity for Billy Wilder. Barbara carried her success lightly; her attitude was one of utter professionalism and no noticeable temperament. As far as she was concerned, she was simply one of a hundred or so people gathered to make a movie—no more, no less.

Evil's henchman Number 2 in all three films: Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997) Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999) and Austin Powers in Goldmember (2002). As Wagner is considered "a suave icon of American caper television including It Takes a Thief and Hart to Hart" Robert Glenister (Hustle's fixer Ash Morgan) commented that "to have one of the icons of that period involved is a great bonus for all of us". In 2005 Wagner became the television spokesman for the Senior Lending Network a reverse mortgage lender and in 2010 began as a spokesman for the Guardian First Funding Group also a reverse mortgage lender.

He also had a recurring role as Teddy Leopold on the TV sitcom Two and a Half Men. In movies Wagner is known for his role as Number Two in the Austin Powers trilogy of films (1997 1999 2002). Wagner's autobiography Pieces of My Heart: A Life written with author Scott Eyman was publiRobert Wagnerd on September 23 2008.