Pierce Brosnan was once a huge American TV star. He was considered one of the best James Bonds ever.
However, now, inside sources are setting the record straight and revealing what Pierce rarely shares about his tragic life story.
Pierce was 24 years old when he met his first wife, Cassandra Harris. Cassandra was five years older than him, and she was also married with two young kids. Pierce said he looked “ridiculous” with slicked-back hair when he met Cassandra at a mutual friend’s house.
RELATED: Valerie Bertinelli finds love again
He also admitted that he was “bowled over” by how beautiful Cassandra was. Cassandra later shared that she initially had no interest in him at all. She descried Pierce as a “funny-looking man with this short haircut.”
She described Pierce as a “funny-looking man with this short haircut.” But Cassandra could already see what was underneath the surface because she said of Pierce: “We had much in common—acting, books, music—and once we started talking, we never stopped.”
Pierce Brosnan Adopted His First Wife’s Kids
Cassandra would get a divorce a year after she met Pierce, and they married the following year. Seven years later, Pierce adopted Cassandra’s daughter, Charlotte, and her son, Chris. Pierce and Cassandra were both actors, and he would go on to become more famous than his first wife.
When Pierce appeared on a British talk show called Wogan in the 80s, he told wild stories about a part he got in a movie…starring the legendary Elizabeth Taylor. But Pierce seemed happiest in his personal life. After he married Cassandra, he said, “we just clicked as a family.”
At first, her two kids called him Pierce, or Daddy Pierce, but eventually, he just became Dad. Four years after they married, Cassandra and Pierce also had a son named Sean. But when Sean was just four years old, the first tragedy struck for Pierce and his family.
Cassandra was diagnosed with a life-threatening ovarian cancer when she was just 39 years old. In a shocking twist, her ex-husband had passed away the year before, so Charlotte and Chris had already lost their biological father. Cassandra fought her cancer bravely for four more years. But she passed away when she was just 43 years old.
Tragically, Cassandra and Pierce would have celebrated their 11th wedding anniversary had she lived. Pierce agreed to an interview with People just four months after Cassandra passed away, and he revealed shockingly intimate details of her final night.
Pierce’s Grief After Losing Cassandra Was Overwhelming
He described lying by Cassandra’s side in a hospital bed, and Pierce called it the longest night of his life. “I was in a helpless state of… confusion and anger,” he said. He also bravely admitted that Cassandra was comforting him during those final hours.
Pierce said that Cassandra made him the man he is, the actor he is, and the father he is: “She’s forever embedded in every fiber of my being. She’s there with me every day. I was so blessed to have met someone like that.”
He revealed that Cassandra had decided the family should move to America in 1981, and she helped Pierce choose movie roles that became box office hits. Another side to this story is that Cassandra was a Bond girl long before Pierce took the lead role as James Bond.
RELATED: Loni Love Health Update
Her most famous acting role was Countess Lisl in the Bond movie For Your Eyes Only. And she introduced Pierce to Albert “Cubby” Broccoli, who produced the 007 franchise. But Pierce also revealed the sheer pain of losing his wife when his career in Hollywood was taking off.
“There is an incredible cruelty in it all, losing a person you shared everything with,” he told People. Pierce admitted it was the first time in his life he’d ever had to deal with losing a loved one, and he confessed that losing his wife was “overwhelming.”
He even described how the terrible grief came on him when he least expected it, and he said that he’d experienced an awful moment driving on the freeway near his home in the Malibu Hills. Pierce revealed: “Before you know it, you’re screaming at the top of your lungs, ‘Why? Why?’”
Sadly, Pierce revealed that their son, Sean, “would sometimes play doctor” or “he would nurse” Cassandra before she passed away, which made her feel a little bit better. After Cassandra passed away, Pierce returned home to break the heartbreaking news to Sean.
He said: “The tears came to his eyes, but they never fell. He just said, ‘It’s for the best, Daddy. She’s not in pain anymore.’ And that was it.” Unfortunately, that wasn’t it for Pierce.
His sons Christopher and Sean have both battled an addiction to substances, and People reported that Sean was in a life-threatening car accident when he was 16. Sean had to learn to walk again and became dependent on pain medication.
Tragically, Charlotte Also Passed Away
In 1997, Christopher received a three-month jail sentence for driving under the influence. But thankfully, both brothers have regained their sobriety. However, fate dealt Pierce another blow 22 years after Cassandra passed away. Tragically, the same terrible disease that took Cassandra’s life would also strike Charlotte.
Charlotte received the shocking diagnosis that she had ovarian cancer. She passed away in her 40s like her mother did. Before she lost her life to cancer, Charlotte married her longtime partner, Alex Smith. She left behind a daughter named Sophie and a son named Lucas.
Pierce released a statement, saying: “Charlotte fought her cancer with grace and humanity, courage and dignity. Our hearts are heavy with the loss of our beautiful, dear girl. We pray for her and that the cure for this wretched disease will be close at hand soon.”
But behind the scenes, Pierce made an even more heartbreaking confession to his longtime friend, Nancy Ellison. Nancy told People that Pierce wrote to her after Charlotte passed away, and he shared his “most intense memory” of Charlotte.
Pierce said he was always able to make Charlotte laugh—and tragically, he wanted to be able to make her laugh again. Pierce appeared on Larry King just months before Charlotte lost her battle with cancer. Larry talked to Pierce about being a widower and how he managed to deal with the many tragedies in his life.
Pierce Met Keely Shaye Smith and Found Love Again
Pierce told Larry that a strong faith helped him get through the darkest moments. But Larry asked if Pierce had ever lost his faith. And Pierce made a shocking confession. When he lost Cassandra, Pierce believed he would never find a love like that again.
But he did eventually meet a woman named Keely Shaye Smith. And he would marry again.
Three years after Cassandra passed away, Pierce was in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, and he ended up at a beach party where he met Keely. She was a journalist and was in Cabo on an assignment to interview actor Ted Danson.
Keely and Pierce met in April and began dating. They married at Ballintubber Abbey in Ireland, followed by a three-day party at Ashford Castle that allegedly cost 1.5 million British pounds. Pierce and Keely have two boys named Dylan and Paris, and he calls Keely his “North Star”
RELATED: Kellie Pickler Update After Husband’s Tragic Death
He also revealed that Keely encouraged him to mourn his late wife, Cassandra. In one interview Pierce said, “I know what it is like to be a widower and what it is like to find love again. So I know there’s hope and that you have to learn to get on with it.”
But Pierce has made some heartbreaking confessions about love and loss. “The memory of Cassie and her fight against cancer is never forgotten,” he added in another interview.
Pierce also admitted that watching Cassandra’s life being “eaten away bit by bit” from cancer filled him with a sorrow that became a part of him.
Pierce said Keely offered him a strength that helped him overcome his tragedies and support he couldn’t live without.He loves Keely’s vitality and passion. “When Keely looks at me, I go weak in the knees,” he shared.
