As a movie actor, Pierce Brosnan is known as the best Bond ever.

In real life, Pierce Brosnan is known as a happy man who has the most successful and longest marriage in Hollywood . But few people know, the Navan native had a dark and tragic past before finding his current happiness .

Pierce Brosnan ‘s first wife and daughter both died of the same disease

Brosnan moved to London at the age of 11, meeting his first wife, Australian actress Cassandra Harris, in 1977 at the age of 24.

At the time, Cassandra Harris was married to film producer Dermot Harris and they have two children, 15-year-old Christopher and 14-year-old Charlotte.

Pierce Brosnan attends the USC Norris Cancer Center Gala at the Beverly Wilshire Four Seasons Hotel on October 10, 2015 in Beverly Hills, California

Speaking about their first meeting, Brosnan said: ‘She was a beautiful woman . I just wanted to enjoy her beauty and kept wondering who she was ‘.

The couple began dating and married in December 1980 . In September 1983 , Cassandra Harris gave birth to a baby boy, named Sean.

Pierce lived with Harris’s children , raising and loving them after the children’s biological father , Dermot, died in 1986 . Later, the children all bore the surname Brosnan .

Pierce Brosnan with wife Cassandra Harris and her stepsons, Christopher and Charlotte

In an interview, Pierce once said : ‘ We are just a normal family . First, I’m Pierce, then I’m Daddy Pierce. And then I became a real father . I feel so lucky that Charlotte and Chris appeared in my life.’

Sharing about his wife’s illness, Pierce said: ‘ When your partner has cancer, your life will completely change. Your schedule and references to your normal habits , as well as the way you view life, will all change because someone you love is facing death. 

The chemotherapy and surgeries that your partner undergoes will make you feel extremely painful . Still, Cassie is very optimistic about life. I mean, she has the most amazing drive and outlook on life ‘ .

Cassandra did not have the opportunity to witness Pierce fulfill his life’s big dream of taking on the role of James Bond, because he took the role four years after Cassandra passed away.

Sadly , his adopted daughter Charlotte passed away in June 2013, from the same disease that killed her mother. Worth mentioning, Charlotte’s grandmother ( Cassandra’s mother ) also died of ovarian cancer. 

The only thing that could console Pierce at that time was the fact that he was able to leave the set in Europe to be with his daughter before she passed away .

He was pained to announce: ‘ At 2pm on June 28, my beloved daughter, Charlotte Emily, left this world , after battling ovarian cancer . 

Before she closed her eyes, she was with everyone she loved: husband Alex, children Isabella and Lucas , brothers Christopher and Sean ‘.

Pierce Brosnan, son Christopher Brosnan and daughter Charlotte Brosnan attend the “Love Affair” West Hollywood Premiere on October 13, 1994 at the DGA Theater in West Hollywood, California

With just a glimmer of hope, Pierce Brosnan continues with life

Pierce admitted that he fell into a dark depression after the deaths of his wife and daughter. ‘Watching someone you love being eaten away little by little by an evil disease, that sadness becomes an indelible part of your soul ,’ he said.

Although he thought he would never find love again, the actor finally met American journalist and former model Keely Shaye Smith at a bar in Mexico in 1994.

Pierce Brosnan and daughter Charlotte arrive for the Orange British Academy Film Awards (BAFTAs) at Odeon Leicester Square on February 19, 2006 in London

The couple went on to welcome two sons, Dylan in 1997 and Paris in 2001. Later that year, they held a traditional Irish wedding in Ballintubber.

 In 2021, the couple celebrated 27 years together and Pierce did not forget to honor Keely for helping him make up for his loss.

‘I know what it’s like to be a man who lost his wife and what  it’s like to find love again. So I know I still have hope and I have to learn to get on with it ,’ Brosnan told Mirror. He affirmed: ‘The memory of Cassie and her fight against cancer will never be forgotten’ .