The Key to Jamie Lee Curtis’ 40-Year Marriage to Christopher Guest Is Shared: “Remain on the Bus”
Jamie Lee Curtis is being up about her marriage to Christopher Guest and how they manage to make it work.
The 65-year-old actress said on Entertainment Tonight that “you don’t leave” is the key to the couple’s enduring marriage; they will commemorate their 40th wedding anniversary in December.
“We have a saying in recovery that goes, ‘If you stay on the bus, the landscape will change.’ I’ve been clean for a long time. And that’s marriage,” she remarked, going on to discuss how her 76-year-old husband Guest and she had ebbs and flows, sometimes even moment to moment.
“The next day is usually quite sunny and your puppy or child does something adorable, so you look at each other and say, “Aww, gosh.” It’s like all of a sudden you literally want to despise each other. After that, you’re on a different track,” she said to ET.
The Freaky Friday actress continued, “so I think persistence, patience, gentleness— and a really good dose of hatred.”
Curtis then talked about how Marlo Thomas and the late Phil Donahue interviewed her and Guest for their 2020 book What Makes a Marriage Last.
“‘What do you believe the secret is [to marriage]?’ they questioned. And I questioned, “Am I the only one who has mentioned detesting their spouse?” “Yeah huh,” said Thomas. “But that’s the truth,” I responded. Curtis remembered.
“You will be hostile against one another. We’re human,” she went on to say to ET. “Forty years, you’re going to hate each other, and so not leaving, not allowing that hatred to cause you to make some choice that you’re going to regret — I think that’s really the secret.”
The Haunted Mansion actress, who won her first Emmy on Sunday, September 8, for her fearless performance as The Bear’s matriarch Donna Berzatto, recently celebrated a significant life milestone with her spouse.
In observance of the passing of forty years since their first date, she shared a throwback image of herself and Guest on Instagram on July 2.
The couple is seen holding hands in the 1980s photo. She added, “40 years ago today I went on my first date with Christopher.” next to the photo. Five months later, we were married and got our lives begun. Fortuitous meeting. Life relying on. Kids developing. “LOVE IS LOVE.”
After just five months of dating, the pair got married on December 18, 1984, and they had two kids together: Annie, 34, and Ruby, 25.
Curtis has already talked candidly to PEOPLE about the highs and lows of her marriage with Guest. She stated, “I don’t think we have an easy marriage,” in a 1991 interview. Our marriage is challenging but successful.”
Curtis stated that Guest has consistently been a reliable source of support for her, even throughout the challenging periods.
She said to AARP in 2021, “When I drive up and see that [he is] home, I feel safe.” That explains the lengthy marriage.
She said at the time, “It’s the security of knowing his car is in the garage, that I’m not alone.”
