James Brolin Says He’s ‘Fallen’ More ‘in Love’ With Wife Barbra Streisand Amid the Pandemic

For tons of couples, spending endless time in quarantine amid the coronavirus pandemic was the last straw. However, being together 24/7 had the opposite effect for James Brolin and Barbra Streisand, who have “fallen” more “in love” since the beginning of lockdown last year.

“We, for a long time, were put out by COVID. And a lot of people, their marriages haven’t gone well during these 15 months,” the Amityville Horror alum, 80, shared during an appearance on The Talk on Friday, June 11, pointing out how that hasn’t been the case for him and Barbra, 79.

“We’ve literally fallen in love over this period of time, just being stuck together every day and making it work,” James sweetly gushed. “23 years is better than ever, I must say.”

While speaking with host Sheryl Underwood, the Westworld actor offered a reason why the two have been able to maintain their strong bond after more than two decades. “Neither one of us have ever gone out the door [after] an argument and we are good at talking things out,” he explained.

James also credited their different personalities. “I like women who say their peace, and I’m a calming factor, and she gets me up and doing things I wouldn’t normally accomplish,” he sweetly marveled. “It’s like a perfect situation, the two of us.”

It seems the longtime couple’s love language is quality time, but James dished he’ll surprise the Funny Girl actress with a gift “every once in a while when it’s not expected.” He said because Barbra is “pretty picky,” choosing a present for his love isn’t the easiest feat.

“I’ll do a good piece of jewelry, [but] they’re not all what she would’ve picked out,” the Life in Pieces actor quipped. “Every once in a while I score.”

James and Barbra are gearing up to celebrate 23 years of marriage this July, having wed in 1998. While the pair never welcomed any kids together, they’ve created one of the sweetest families in all of Hollywood, blending their broods from previous relationships. The A Star Is Born actress is the mom of son Jason Gould with ex-husband Elliott Gould, while James shares sons Josh Brolin and Jess Brolin with ex-wife Jane Cameron Agee. He’s also the dad of Molly Elizabeth Brolin with his second former spouse, Jan Smithers.

Though it didn’t work out with their previous romances, the Marcus Welby, M.D. star said he feels “so lucky” to have found true love with the Mirror Has Two Faces actress. While exclusively chatting with Closer Weekly about life in quarantine in August 2020, James expressed how thankful he was to be with his “whole family.”

“Everybody is quite loving,” he gushed. “I’m enjoying my wife so much right now and she feels the same way! We’re just so happy that we have each other and we’ve always gotten along.”