While it may be old news now, Sean Penn and Madonna were once married from 1985 to 1989. And while their relationship had Hollywood’s attention at the time, rumors of their rocky marriage and explosive fights meant no one was shocked when they went their separate ways.
But how are they doing now? In a new interview with Penn, the Oscar winner revealed he and the “Like a Virgin” singer have put the past behind them.
“She’s someone I love,” Penn told The New York Times.
“It turns out it’s a lot quicker to repair a friendship after divorce if there are not kids involved,” Penn reflected. In addition to his marriage to the pop singer, Penn married fellow actress Robin Wright from 1996 to 2010 and Leila George from 2020 to 2022. With Wright, he shares kids Dylan Frances Penn, 33, and Hopper Jack Penn, 30.
“It took Robin and I quite a while,” Penn said of his longtime ex. “There was a lot of drama. Much more important to repair it if there are kids involved, but no easy swing, right?”
Also in the interview, Penn set the record straight about his and Madonna’s reported explosive fights. And while Penn didn’t deny their fights, he did explain that things would often escalate disproportionally.
According to Penn, one of their worst fights started with Madonna saying “she was worried because there were guns in the house.” Then, things quickly took a turn.
“I had a freaking SWAT team come into my house,” he said. “The next thing I knew, windows were being broken all around the house and they came in. They had me in handcuffs.”
So while his and Madonna’s marriage was no walk in the park, it’s safe to say it perhaps wasn’t as bad as the tabloids made it out to be at the time. After all, their being friends to this day is a testament to that.
Before you go, click here to see the longest celebrity divorces that took years to get finalized.
