{"id":8332,"date":"2024-12-16T17:48:15","date_gmt":"2024-12-16T17:48:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/strongermarriages\/?p=8332"},"modified":"2024-12-16T17:48:15","modified_gmt":"2024-12-16T17:48:15","slug":"pierce-brosnan-cites-faith-for-seeing-him-through-the-loss-of-his-wife-and-daughter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/strongermarriages\/2024\/12\/pierce-brosnan-cites-faith-for-seeing-him-through-the-loss-of-his-wife-and-daughter.html","title":{"rendered":"Pierce Brosnan Cites Faith for Seeing Him Through the Loss of His Wife and Daughter"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Ovidiu Hrubaru \/ Shutterstock.com<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Oftentimes, celebrities with their millions and lavish lifestyles can seem far removed from the day-to-day experiences of everyday people. Yet that doesn\u2019t exclude them from experiencing tragedy like the rest of us. Actor Pierce Brosnan, best-known for his role as James Bond, knows this firsthand, after experiencing the death of his first wife, actress Cassandra Harris, from ovarian cancer in 1991. Harris was only 41 at the time and the pair had been married for 11 years. They had one child, Sean, who was born in 1983. Brosnan also adopted Harris\u2019s two other children, Charlotte and Christopher, from a previous marriage after their father died in 1986. Harris battled the cancer for 4 years before finally succumbing. \u201c\u201cI went through it all, very publicly,\u201d Pierce said. \u201cSuch things draw a mark across your heart and it\u2019s always a part of your life. To watch someone you love have their life eaten away \u2013 bit by bit, by this insidious and horrid disease \u2013 becomes an indelible part of your psyche,\u201d he said of the experience<\/a>.<\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t the end of personal tragedies for Brosnan. In 2013, the daughter he had adopted, Charlotte Harris, also succumbed to ovarian cancer like her mother. She was just 42. Brosnan shared the news<\/a> to People <\/em>the time. \u201cOn June 28 at 2 p.m. my darling daughter Charlotte Emily passed on to eternal life, having succumbed to ovarian cancer. She was surrounded by her husband Alex, children Isabella and Lucas and brothers Christopher and Sean.\u201d He added, \u201cCharlotte 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. We thank everyone for their heartfelt condolences.\u201d Brosnan called the loss \u201ca crushing blow.\u201d<\/p>\n

In 2014, Brosnan starred in the film A Long Way Down<\/em>, where his character dealt with depression and thoughts of suicide. He drew from his own experiences of grief for the character. Despite the deep pain he experienced, he credited his Catholic faith for seeing him through. \u201cI would say faith, being Irish, being Catholic, it’s ingrained in my DNA,\u201d he told New York Daily News<\/em><\/a>. His life has also experienced great joy. In 2001, he married Keely Shaye Smith. The pair had met while Brosnan was on a trip in Mexico in 1994. \u201cI had a great marriage which sadly had its own ending, and I was lucky enough to find love again. We were meant to find each other. I thank God for her every day. When Keely looks at me, I go weak. I love her vitality, her passion. She has this strength that I wouldn\u2019t be able to live without,\u201d Brosnan said<\/a> of his new love. The pair have two children, Paris and Dylan. After 23 years of marriage, the couple still remain strong. \u201cWe like each other a lot. We love each other a lot. And we’ve been down the road, and we’ve seen many, many hardships as families do, as we all do,\u201d Brosnan said in a previous interview. \u201cBut watching someone grow up with you and grow old with you is a very spiritual journey. To watch each other change \u2026 whatever it may be, the hair, the waist. But it’s the love in the heart.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Oftentimes, celebrities with their millions and lavish lifestyles can seem far removed from the day-to-day experiences of everyday people. Yet that doesn\u2019t exclude them from experiencing tragedy like the rest of us. Actor Pierce Brosnan, best-known for his role as James Bond, knows this firsthand, after experiencing the death of his first wife, actress Cassandra…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":627,"featured_media":8329,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fbia_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[36,23],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8332","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-celebrities","category-relationships"],"yoast_head":"\nPierce Brosnan Cites Faith for Seeing Him Through the Loss of His Wife and Daughter<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/strongermarriages\/2024\/12\/pierce-brosnan-cites-faith-for-seeing-him-through-the-loss-of-his-wife-and-daughter.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Pierce Brosnan Cites Faith for Seeing Him Through the Loss of His Wife and Daughter\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Oftentimes, celebrities with their millions and lavish lifestyles can seem far removed from the day-to-day experiences of everyday people. Yet that doesn\u2019t exclude them from experiencing tragedy like the rest of us. Actor Pierce Brosnan, best-known for his role as James Bond, knows this firsthand, after experiencing the death of his first wife, actress Cassandra…\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/strongermarriages\/2024\/12\/pierce-brosnan-cites-faith-for-seeing-him-through-the-loss-of-his-wife-and-daughter.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Stronger Marriages\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-12-16T17:48:15+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/wp-media.beliefnet.com\/sites\/413\/2024\/12\/pierce-brosnan_credit-Ovidiu-Hrubaru-Shutterstock.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"900\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Cecilia Buchanan\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Pierce Brosnan Cites Faith for Seeing Him Through the Loss of His Wife and Daughter","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/strongermarriages\/2024\/12\/pierce-brosnan-cites-faith-for-seeing-him-through-the-loss-of-his-wife-and-daughter.html","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Pierce Brosnan Cites Faith for Seeing Him Through the Loss of His Wife and Daughter","og_description":"Oftentimes, celebrities with their millions and lavish lifestyles can seem far removed from the day-to-day experiences of everyday people. 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