Pierce Brosnan’s tough upbringing without a father and his role as an adoptive parent after losing his first wife.
The star managed to become an attentive father despite his past.
Pierce’s youngest child celebrated his graduation.
Pierce Brosnan was an infant living in an Irish riverside village when his father, Tom, abandoned their family. He ended up living with relatives when his mother left him for London, where she hoped to find work.
Pierce shared a room, his space and haven, in a boardinghouse with two workers where he slept on a metal bed with a curtain. The future actor spent most of his time alone and entertained with American Western fantasies.
His attraction to the genre was what eventually led him to his career. Before he relocated to London, Pierce was moved around the British Isles during his childhood, and he spent most of his time separated from his family.
At age 31, he met his father in 1984 when he suggested that his series, “Remington Steele” – the cause of his fame – have an episode shot in Ireland. The star spent a Sunday afternoon with Tom, and they chatted about different things, drank some Guinness, then parted ways. In 2017, the celebrity admitted that he would’ve loved to have known his father better, but all he knew was:
“He was a good whistler, and he had a good walk….”
Despite having a difficult childhood and not having a steady father figure to guide him, Pierce pursued having a family unit. However, he had to prove himself when forced to step up as a parent.
How Did ‘James Bond’ Become a Single Father of Adopted Children?
Pierce was lucky to have found love and marriage with his wife, Cassandra “Cassie” Harris, whom he married in 1980. The couple celebrated their 14th wedding anniversary on December 27, 1991, when tragedy struck as Cassie lost her battle with cancer.
Despite having a difficult childhood and not having a steady father figure to guide him, Pierce pursued having a family unit. However, he had to prove himself when forced to step up as a parent.
How Did ‘James Bond’ Become a Single Father of Adopted Children?
Pierce was lucky to have found love and marriage with his wife, Cassandra “Cassie” Harris, whom he married in 1980. The couple celebrated their 14th wedding anniversary on December 27, 1991, when tragedy struck as Cassie lost her battle with cancer.
The night his wife died was “one of the longest nights” in the actor’s life. The following morning he called their son, Christopher, who was in Malibu, and asked him to rush to the hospital.
At around five minutes to 10 a.m. Cassie had started transitioning. Charlotte, his daughter who was a student at London’s Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, called from her location, and Pierce confessed that the child’s mother was dying.
Cassie’s daughter managed to sound calm on the other line and told her father it was okay. The celebrity held his wife in his arms as he spoke to their daughter, and within two minutes, Christopher barged in, and they were together when Cassie died from ovarian cancer.
The star’s youngest son, Sean, was home, and his father put him in his lap to tell him the heartbreaking news. The boy teared up, but his tears never fell, and he told his father it was for the best because his mother was no longer in pain.
The “James Bond” actor became an instant single parent after adopting Charlotte and Christopher, his wife’s children from her previous relationship with Dermot Harris. Christopher was only five when he was adopted, and Sean was Pierce and Cassie’s biological child, who was eight when she died.
Although he was heartbroken, Pierce had to remain strong for his children. Not having had a father to raise him didn’t deter the actor from taking on his role with commitment and love.
What Kind of Father Is Pierce after Having a Hard Childhood?
In 2017, Pierce, 63, confessed that he knew what it was like to raise boy children as he had four. “The Son” star said raising them could be “a very arduous road” and revealed how he did it so flawlessly, stating:
“My fatherly instincts are purely my own. They relate back to no one because there was no one.”
When asked if being moved around often was why he kept his children close, the celebrity said he suspected so but that he also cherished family and being a father. He admitted that growing up without a father or a solid family caused a fracture in his life.
The “Mrs. Doubtfire” actor shared how loneliness and isolation weighed heavily on him. Raising his children required him to use his senses and intuition, and he valued the love he got from his family.
Speaking about his second wife, Keely Shaye Smith, he described her as the most incredible woman and mother. He’d watched her and their lives together grow and expand over almost 30 years, and they still had more dreams to fulfill, with him adding:
“I live a rather glorious life.”
About three years after losing his first wife, Pierce fell in love with Smith, but they only married in 2001. The Golden Globe nominee and his second spouse welcomed Dylan and Paris, two more sons who made their total children four.
Charlotte sadly died in 2013 from the same ailment that took her mother. The actor never stopped thinking about Cassie but was grateful for the life he and Smith created, and once said spoke about finding love again, saying it was best to follow and trust your heart to meet the best people, noting:
“When Keely looks at me, I go weak. I love her vitality, her passion.”
The father of four said the “Poisoning Paradise” actress had a strength he couldn’t live without. Most of his family’s days are now happy, but once in a while, Pierce recalled his darker days filled with loss.
The actress [Keely Shaye Smith] noted how “beyond proud” she was of her son [Paris Brosnan] and the talent and passion he had.
However, his priority was his family, especially his children, as he acknowledged that fatherhood was a big responsibility but a “satisfying one.” Time flew for the actor, and he soon celebrated a significant milestone for his youngest child.
69-Year-Old Pierce Beaming at Son’s Graduation
One happy moment for Pierce’s family came at the beginning of May 2023, when he and his wife uploaded Instagram images celebrating Paris’ college graduation. In the actor’s post, he was seen beaming as he and Smith sandwiched their son.
Paris was dressed in his graduation wear, including sunglasses. His father congratulated him on graduating from Loyola Marymount University School of Film & Television and urged him to enter the world with a “brave heart” and to “create stories” that would make the world better.
In his photo, Pierce, 69, smiled as he looked proudly at his son. Smith uploaded two images of her with her son, one with the actor, and the other seemed to be with Paris’s grandmother, and congratulated him on his graduation.
The actress noted how “beyond proud” she was of her son and the talent and passion he had. She wished him to do good things and shared that a man became whatever he dreamt, urging Paris to “dream well” before declaring her and her husband’s love.
