Many people were astonished when Billy Bob Thornton abruptly left his fiancé for another lady, which made headlines. The couple’s significant 20-year age difference, as well as the fact that they were both seeing other people at the time, added to the mystery.Billy Bob’s fiancée, actress Laura Dern, was among those caught off guard.
Laura alleges that learning of her partner’s marriage to Angelina Jolie caught her off guard and threw a wrench in her relationship preparations.According to E! Online, Laura and Billy Bob began dating in 1997, shortly after Laura separated from Jeff Goldblum and while Billy Bob was still divorcing his fourth wife, Pietra Dawn Cherniak.
Billy Bob and Angelina met on the set of Pushing Tin in 1999, and two years later, they were engaged and preparing to marry.Their brief engagement culminated in an unplanned marriage in Las Vegas in May 2000, which caught Laura by surprise.Laura remarked on the unexpected change of events, telling InStyle: “I left our home to work on a movie, and while I was away, my boyfriend got married, and I’ve never heard from him again.”
She felt perplexed and abruptly lost in the situation, with no end in sight.Billy Bob expressed contrition in a 2001 interview, as reported by the Mirror, despite never admitting to any misconduct. He said, “Others may claim that you abandoned our girl and married someone else. But it made both me and someone else happy. I apologize if it caused you any sorrow.”
According to Yahoo, Laura and Angelina had previously connected when Laura babysat Angelina when they were younger, which added an unusual twist to the story. Laura’s father, Bruce Dern, recalled that period. In reference to the 1978 film Coming Home, Bruce stated, “Jon Voight is a friend of mine, so I remember Laura babysat for Angelina one night when Angelina was 2 and Laura was about 8 … because Jon and I were doing Coming Home.”
They were staying at [director] Hal Ashby’s house, so they invited [Laura] to come over and watch Angie.” Laura’s friend Melissa Etheridge offered her support after they split up, and she revealed how she helped Laura move out of their shared residence with Billy Bob.Melissa stated (via the Sun) in an interview with Andy Cohen on his SiriusFM radio show: “I was there when Angelina wasn’t doing lovely things with Billy Bob to Laura Dern.
I went through it personally before learning of Jennifer and Brad’s perspectives. I helped Laura relocate out of her house with Billy Bob – I basically broke into their house to get their belongings out because it was that filthy.”Everyone concerned went on with their lives after that. Laura eventually married Ben Harper, with whom she had two children. Since then, she has been linked to former NBA star Baron Davis.
Billy Bob and Angelina separated in 2002, and he stopped dating celebrities to preserve their privacy. Later, in an attempt to live a more peaceful life away from the spotlight, he married a puppeteer in 2014.