Sarah Jessica Parker’s 7 Hard Years with Robert Downey Jr: Romance Rewind

Long before marriage Matthew Broderick, Sarah Jessica Parker calculated Robert Downey Jr. as her great love – but it was no surprise that their relationship was not easy. Two child stars who move in at 18 after a few weeks of dating – what could possibly go wrong? Let’s find out…

How it started

Both just 18 — now 59 with birthdays 10 days apart — Parker and Downey Jr. they met on the set of a movie for teenagers Firstborn in 1984. Already childhood friends and familiar faces in the era’s Brat Pack scene, things quickly got serious: after a few weeks of dating, they moved to Los Angeles together.

How long did it take?

Parker was basically a saint: she stayed with Downey Jr., despite his well-documented substance abuse problems, for seven whole years. While the romance included iconic ’80s outfits, great movie roles and glamorous parties, it was also seven years of misery, addiction, fear and stress with clean living. Sex in the city the star says The New Yorker in 2023 that the relationship “made her feel like a parent at 22”.

How it ended

The couple broke up in 1991 when Parker realized she could no longer help her charming and charismatic but deeply troubled love. She moved back to New York where she continued to date John F. Kennedy Jr. before settling down with Broderick a few years later in 1997. That was around the time Downey Jr., who said he was addicted to drugs since his father gave them to him when he was eight, hit rock bottom. He ended up serving 12 months in prison after repeatedly missing court-ordered drug tests, but has now been sober since 2003 and married to Susan Downey since 2005.

What they said about themselves

Both parties are probably thankful that their relationship predated social media and the explosion of the internet in general, because we can now only imagine the amount of discussion it would have generated, but when they were together, they regularly appeared at red carpet events. Many years after their breakup — and Downey Jr. now maintaining a sober life and enjoying great critical and commercial success in films such as Iron Man and Oppenheimer — has spoken about their relationship in a number of interviews, and it’s clear that it’s been an extremely difficult time for both of them.

What are they saying now?

It wasn’t until 2023 that Parker opened The New Yorker about the relationship of a couple that defined an era but was doomed. “People around me would reject me, but I gave him stability and tried to create a steady heartbeat that allowed him to show up in time,” she said. “That made me angry and embarrassed.

In 2020 she said People that she thought the relationship actually affected her own parenting (she and Broderick have twins Tabitha and Loretta and a son, James). “Maybe it taught me a little bit about being a parent, because the things I ended up taking care of and the way I took care of Downey were things that might be more appropriate for a parent at some point,” she said. .

Further, in a 2016 podcast interview, Parker revealed that she was constantly worried that Downey Jr. he will die if he leaves him. On “WTF with Marc Maron,” she said, “You love that person and you’re afraid they’re going to die if you’re not there supporting their base every single day alone. … I just didn’t want him to die. The biggest and hardest decision about such relationships is feeling brave enough to leave, even when you think they’re going to die.”

Meanwhile, Downey Jr Procession magazine in 2008 that he had happy memories of their time together, despite everything they had been through. “I liked to drink and I had a drug problem and that didn’t apply to Sarah Jessica because it’s the furthest thing from who she is,” he said. “She gave me a home and understanding. She tried to help me. She was so upset when I didn’t get my act together. Private things aside, we were able to spend some time together and it was really great. I was in love with Sarah Jessica and apparently love wasn’t enough.”

Key information about relationships

The former couple actually got together in 2015 to wrap up their tumultuous relationship — and apparently it went well.

Speaking during a performance The Howard Stern Show in 2016 Downey Jr. he said, “You know, the funny thing is, you always have a perception of someone that you’ve spent a large part of your life with, and I think it’s typical… that the further you go in your new relationship, you inadvertently taint your perception of the person. When I saw her, I was like, ‘She’s so great and so cool and so funny and so commanding’. I have met her children and seen how she and Matthew live and I respect them both so much.

Parker also spoke to Stern about their 2016 reunion. “It was really nice. Surprisingly, it wasn’t weird. Basically, we’re on the same page,” she said. “The difference is he has a family and a wife and obviously his career is a huge thing. But I think his true nature was completely known. I always felt a great affection for him, I thought it ended well in a way. I never cared for his welfare, and I never felt resentment or bitterness.’

Yes, despite everything they’ve been through together, these two are now as mature and measured as can be, with incredible careers to be proud of as well. What a journey.