Samuel L. Jackson & Wife LaTanya Richardson Reveal Secret to 41-Year Marriage!
Samuel L. Jackson and wife LaTanya Richardson are starring in a love story of their own! In a candid interview with People for this week’s issue, the Oscar-nominated actor, 73, and the Tony-nominated actress, 72, reveal the secret to their 41-year marriage.
“It’s two people who respect each other, love each other, and look out for each other,” Samuel said. The two actors first met in college when LaTanya attended Spelman College and Samuel was a student at Morehouse College.
The two tied the knot in 1980 and share daughter Zoe, 39. In their sit-down, LaTanya told the outlet that she and her husband made a pact to “stay together no matter what.”
“In the beginning, we always said the most revolutionary thing that Black people could do was stay together, raise their children with the nucleus of having a father and a mother, since everybody likes to pretend that that’s not the dynamic of the African American family. That it’s just children out here being raised by women, which we know is false,” LaTanya explained.
“In order to change that narrative, we made a decision to say, ‘We are going to stay together no matter what. We’ll figure it out.’” Though the couple have experienced their ups and downs — including Samuel’s drug addiction and then recovery — the two stuck it out.
“She gave me the chance to be the man I was supposed to be,” Samuel explained. While LaTanya and Samuel have enjoyed storied careers, they make it a point to take July off and spend time with family and friends.
“Don’t wake anybody up. You sleep when you sleep. Then we come together and eat,” Jackson said about the only vacation rule he has regarding Zoe and her pals.
Aside from their marriage, Samuel and LaTanya have teamed up as producing partners on the Apple TV+ limited series “The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey,” a drama starring Samuel as a man with dementia caused by Alzheimer’s.
“I’m amazed at how busy we are in our seventh decade,” LaTanya said. “I’m grateful because I think of all the things that could be.”
Years ago, Loni revealed her opinions about the family unit, particularly how it pertains to the Black community. WATCH, below:
