8 Hollywood stars who married or dated politicians

“Elizabeth Taylor, do you think it’s forever?” That Taylor Swift lyric might well have echoed in Republican Senator John Warner’s mind when he married the legendary actress in 1976. 

He was husband number six (of seven), but their marriage was her longest – lasting for six years until 1982. The pair met on a blind date when he escorted her to a dinner hosted by Queen Elizabeth at the British Embassy in Washington, D.C. 

Elizabeth soon became instrumental in his political rise, campaigning alongside him during his 1978 Senate run. Voters turned out in droves to catch a glimpse of Liz; but clearly liked what they saw in John, who ended up winning.

Like father, like son…Pierre Trudeau, Justin’s father, also had a penchant for famous celebrities, with his first partnership being with the Broadway-belting star Barbra Streisand. The two had a brief but headline-grabbing fling in the late 1960s, reportedly meeting at a party in New York around the time Pierre became Prime Minister of Canada in 1968. Barbra described him in her memoir My Name is Barbra (2023) as “The kind of man I would like to date” – and that she did. The pair broke it off in 1969, which is fair enough: Hello, Dolly! came out that year, and Pierre was busy running a country…both equally important.

Pierre Trudeau had a way with stars – and Kim Cattrall was no exception. The Sex and the City star met the then-Canadian Prime Minister at the opening of her movie Tribute in the early ‘80s, and they kept in touch by phone. Kim once told Maclean’s, “I asked myself, ‘How do you go about getting a date with the Prime Minister?’ And then I decided to call him up and ask for one” – have you ever heard anything more Samantha Jones coded?

Before he was the 'Governator', the only political thing about Arnie was his wife. Maria Shriver, the niece of former US President John F. Kennedy, met Arnold Schwarzenegger in 1977 before he’d made it big as The Terminator, and the pair quickly became one of Hollywood’s power couples. Maria’s political pedigree and journalism career combined with Arnold’s ‘80s fame made them a formidable duo, culminating in their 1986 marriage. The pair divorced in 2021, but not before Maria added another political notch, serving as California’s First Lady during Arnold’s governorship from 2003 to 2011.

Supermodel-turned-singer-songwriter Carla Bruni met the (recently divorced) French President Nicolas Sarkozy at a dinner party in 2007, and sparks flew right away. The two began dating around the time Nicolas took office, and understandably became France’s most talked-about power couple. Can you imagine being one of the top-paid supermodels of the ‘90s, a popular singer, and live in the Élysée Palace? The couple ended up marrying the following year in a fairytale ceremony, and are still together – proving that sometimes the flashiest partnerships are forever.

Music royalty – and 11-time Grammy recipient – Linda Ronstadt met California Governor Jerry Brown in 1971 when the pair were still relatively unknown. But that all changed when Jerry was elected to lead California and Linda started sweeping up Grammys, with newspapers dubbing them, “The governor and the rock queen”. In Man of Tomorrow: The Relentless Life of Jerry Brown (2020), Jerry mentioned the pair “didn’t go out much”, calling it “a pain in the neck”. Despite whispers of a White House wedding, the pair broke up in 1983, but their on-again, off-again romance had an undeniable impact on pop culture.

Barbarella bombshell Jane Fonda and activist Tom Hayden were a match made in political heaven. The pair first met at an anti-war event in 1971, but reconnected the following year – by then, Jane had earned the nickname “Hanoi Jane” after her controversial visit to North Vietnam, while Tom was already known as one of the original Chicago Seven. Together, they became the ultimate counterculture power couple, marrying in 1973 and spending 17 years balancing protests, politics, and parenting their son, Troy. They ended up separating, reportedly in part due to Tom’s disdain for the optics of Jane’s iconic lycra-clad workout empire.

Who could forget “Happy Birthday, Mr. President”, the breathy serenade that fuelled decades of rumours about an alleged affair between Hollywood icon Marilyn Monroe and President John F. Kennedy? Though never officially confirmed, their supposed romance has become the stuff of legend. According to some accounts, Marilyn’s sultry performance at Madison Square Garden was the final straw for Jackie Kennedy, and the alleged affair was promptly ended. Marilyn ended up passing away that same year, adding a tragic note to this mysterious chapter in pop culture history. Over six decades on, and we’re still talking about it.