5 Hollywood marriages that have lasted way beyond 20 years
What's the story
Relationships in Hollywood are more often than not messy affairs with little hope for forever afters. Yet, there are some top stars who lead dreamy and filmy real lives and those who have found their one true love. Today, we take a look at five celebrity couples who have tied the knot decades ago and will be celebrating their nth wedding anniversary this year.
#1
Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson
Actors Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson go way back to the 1980s when they met for the first time on the sets of the sitcom Bosom Buddies. A few years down the line, they started dating. After Hanks divorced his first wife, fellow actor Samantha Lewes, their bond consolidated and they came out in public. They married in 1988 and have been together since.
#2
Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith
For once, let's forget the Oscars 2022 fiasco involving Will Smith (he slapped Chris Rock on stage for cracking an insensitive joke on his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith). Today, our focus will be on Mr. & Mrs. Smith! Sparks flew between them when Pinkett Smith had auditioned for The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1990-1996), Smith's breakthrough in acting. They tied the knot in 1997.
#3
Denzel Washington and Pauletta Pearson
Denzel Washington and Pauletta Pearson occupy third place on this list. The couple first met when they both were starring in the television movie Wilma (1977). They got in touch a year later and then settled down with one another in 1983. "I thought he was cute, but I fell in love with his spirit," Pearson revealed on The Oprah Winfrey Show in 1996.
#4
Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Brad Hall
In the fourth place, we have Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Seinfeld, Veep) and Brad Hall (The Single Guy, Watching Ellie). The couple met when they were students at Northwestern University and Louis-Dreyfus had auditioned for a play by Hall. But Saturday Night Live brought them together and they eventually married in 1987. They are parents to two sons—Henry (born in 1992) and Charles (born in 1997).
#5
Samuel L Jackson and LaTanya Richardson
Samuel L Jackson (aka Nick Fury) and LaTanya Richardson, married since 1980, round up the list. The college sweethearts met when Jackson was attending Morehouse University and Richardson was a student at Spelman College. When asked what keeps them together, Richardson once said, "You can't do this without the Lord," while Jackson had maintained, "Don't let the sun go down on your wrath."