Behind the scenes of his sparkling career Pierce Brosnan lost both his first wife and daughter to ovarian cancer, alongside watching his son devolve into drug addiction – but his new wife is his ‘North Star’
Pierce Brosnan is well-known for his remarkable Hollywood career, but not everyone knows about his tragic experiences behind the scenes. The actor has proved his strength by fighting through the heartbreaking loss of three family members, before finding love again.
The James Bond star became a widow before losing his daughter to the same disease that killed his wife, and has also struggled with the estrangement of his son due to drug addiction.
Back in 1980, Pierce, 71, married his first wife Cassandra Harris, an actress from Australia. The duo moved to Wimbledon together, and welcomed their son Sean in 1983. Cassandra also had a son, Christopher, and daughter, Charlotte, from her previous marriage to Dermot Harris. When Dermot died in 1986, Pierce adopted the children – with both of them taking his last name.
“We just clicked as a family. To begin with I was Pierce, then I was Daddy Pierce, and then I just became Dad. Charlotte and Chris have just been amazing in my life,” he said of the adoption.
Tragically, Cassandra died in December 1991, with Pierce describing her death as “the longest night of my life.” Cassandra had started becoming seriously ill in 1987, and was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. Pierce stayed with her as she passed away, just before their 11th wedding anniversary.
“I was in a helpless state of…confusion and anger. She was comforting me. She has made me the man I am, the actor I am, the father I am,” he said to People after her death. “She’s forever embedded in every fibre of my being. She’s there with me every day. I was so blessed to have met someone like that.”
In 2013, his daughter Charlotte died of the same disease. Charlotte was only 41 when she died on June 28, and the mother of two children.
After her death, it was revealed that Pierce had walked Charlotte down the aisle in a secret wedding just two weeks before she lost her cancer battle. She tied the knot with her partner Alex in a private ceremony, with their daughter Isabella, then 15, acting as a bridesmaid.
Pierce released a heartwrenching statement after his loss, announcing: “On June 28 at 2pm my darling daughter Charlotte Emily passed on to eternal life having succumbed to ovarian cancer.
“She was surrounded by her husband Alex, her children Isabella and Lucas, and her brothers Christopher and Sean. Charlotte fought her cancer with grace and humanity, courage and dignity.
He concluded: “Our hearts are heavy with the loss of our beautiful dear girl. We pray for her and that the cure for this wretched disease is close at hand.”
Throughout Pierce’s losses, he was also dealing with the alienation of his son Christopher – whom it’s understood he hasn’t spoken to for more than a decade.
Christopher seemed to get off to a good start with Pierce as his dad, appearing on the original series of Love Island in 2006 and working with him on Bond films such as The World Is Not Enough. Behind the scenes, however, he was dealing with a crippling drug addiction, and even almost died in 2002 after taking an overdose of the drug GHB.
In an interview with Playboy in 2005, Pierce revealed that he had to cut Christopher off for his own good. “Christopher is still very lost. Shockingly so. I know where he is, but he’s having a hard life,” he said.
Pierce added: “I can only have strong faith and believe he will recover. He has tested everybody in this family but none more so than himself. He knows how to get out. He doesn’t want to.”
Christopher is rarely spotted out and about, but in 2013 was arrested in Brixton after police spotted him leaving a house they suspected was a drug den. A police spokeswoman told People at the time: “A 32-year-old man was arrested in Brixton Road on suspicion of possessing a Class A drug, believed to be heroin. He was taken to a police station and bailed to return in August.”
A source said to the outlet of his involvement with the gang believed to be in the house: “It is tragic for him and his dad if it is true that he is buying drugs off some really tough guys.
“These people do not mess around and if they knew his dad was a millionaire movie star it is anybody’s guess what they might try to do. They could bribe him or even worse try to extort cash from his dad. Chris is at a real low and his family are beside themselves with worry.”
Despite it all, Pierce has remained strong and managed to find love again, after meeting Keely Shaye Smith at a bar in Mexico in 1994.
The couple married in Ireland in 2001, and went on to welcome two sons of their own – Dylan and Paris. The duo are both entering the world of showbiz as models, and gushed over their dad for guiding them, saying they were “grateful for their blessings” and had the “best parents you could ask for.”
Pierce has similarly fawned over their mum, saying that decades into their marriage: “I love her vitality, her passion. When Keely looks at me I go weak at the knees.”
He also revealed that she’s been essential in helping him overcome his losses and struggles. “Keely has always been kind and compassionate and encouraged me to mourn Cassie,” he said. “I think of her all the time. I suppose Keely is my North Star, always looking out for me.”
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