Harrison Ford has played some of Hollywood’s most iconic roles, but these days, the 83-year-old actor is talking less about space adventures or Indiana Jones and more about what really matters: love, marriage, and family.
During a recent appearance on NPR’s “Wild Card with Rachel Martin,” Ford reflected on the lessons he’s learned about relationships. “Old people can love, too,” he said with a smile. “You know, you think about falling in love and all of that business, you think it’s the business of youth or something, you know, and staying in love is the issue. Maintaining, nurturing, basically, not f—— up.”
Ford admitted that marriage takes intentional effort every day, agreeing with Martin that love must be tended to like a garden. He also joked, “some days off for bad behavior” help keep things balanced.
Ford met his wife, actress Calista Flockhart, at the Golden Globe Awards in 2002. He was 59; she was 38. The two tied the knot in June 2010 in New Mexico. “If you ask me, I would say all my life,” Ford said when asked how long he’s been married. “I got married the first time at 23 years of age—should be illegal.”
The actor was first married to Mary Marquardt from 1964 to 1979, and later to screenwriter Melissa Mathison from 1983 to 2004. But Ford has never stopped believing in love. “I’m just like everybody else,” he shared. “I love being in love.”
Back in 2003, he told Hello! magazine, “Romantic love is one of the most exciting and fulfilling kinds of love, and I think there is a potential for it at any stage of your life. I was not surprised that I was able to fall in love, and I wasn’t surprised that I did.”
When Ford married Flockhart, he also adopted her son Liam, whom she had welcomed in 2001. He told Reader’s Digest in 2008 that he admired her courage in becoming a single parent: “It is an awesome responsibility to take, and I was happy to now have a part to play in it.”
“She’s brought a child back into my home,” he added. “My youngest, other than Liam, is 17. It’s a wonderful opportunity to be part of a child’s growing up, which is always an endless springtime. You see the blossoming and the growing and the nurturing and the payoff.”
Ford also has four older children from his previous marriages. Through it all, he and Flockhart have remained a strong team, often appearing side by side at red-carpet events. When he accepted the Career Achievement Award at the Critics Choice Awards in 2024, Ford made sure to thank her for being the steady anchor in his life. “Supporting me when I need a lot of support,” he said, adding with humility, “And I need a lot of support.”
Even as Ford continues to act, he admits his priorities have shifted. He recently earned his first Emmy nomination for “Shrinking,” a comedy series he called “the best job I’ve ever had.” Why? Because it allows him to stay close to home. “I live half an hour away. I go home and I sleep in my own bed. I’m in the same town as my wife and children and I’m doing really smart, intelligent storytelling with incredibly talented people.”
Looking back on years of jet-setting movie shoots, Ford said, “It was great to be traveling the world making big a– movies, but I didn’t find it fulfilling.” These days, what matters most is simple: “I like my family. I like my house. I like to be home and I can be home and have this great job.”