Steven Spielberg Marriages: Wife Kate Capshaw, Ex-Wife

When he’s not directing the next blockbuster hit, Steven Spielberg enjoys spending time with his wife, Kate Capshaw. The couple got married in 1991, marking the second marriage for each of them. The screenwriter was first married to Amy Irving from 1985 to 1989.

Steven and Amy met through director George Lucas after she auditioned for the role of Princess Leia in Star Wars. The pair bonded over their Hollywood connections and began dating in the late ‘70s. After a brief breakup in the early ‘80s, they rekindled their romance and wed in 1985.

The former couple welcomed their son, Max Spielberg, in 1985. Steven continued to build his Hollywood empire, directing 1985’s The Color Purple, 1987’s Empire of the Sun and 1989’s Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. And while his work earned commercial success, his marriage to the Yentl actress began to crumble.

“During my marriage to Steven, I felt like a politician’s wife,” she told the Los Angeles Times in April 1994. “There were certain things expected of me that definitely weren’t me. One of my problems is that I’m very honest and direct. You pay a price for that. But then I behaved myself and I paid a price too.”

The Ohio native split from his first wife in 1989. He had first met Kate when she was cast in 1984’s Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, a sequel in the Harrison Ford-led franchise. They realized their feelings went beyond just having a working relationship in Hollywood. Their first child together, daughter Sasha Spielberg, arrived in 1990.

After walking down the aisle in 1991, Steven became a dad for the third time when son Sawyer Spielberg arrived in 1992. Their daughter Destry Spielberg was born in 1996. The duo also adopted two kids together, son Theo Spielberg, who was born in 1988, and daughter Mikaela Spielberg, who was born in 1996. Kate is a mom to daughter Jessica Capshaw from her first marriage to Robert Capshaw.

The Academy Award winner never envisioned himself starting a family of his own. However, it was his work on E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial that led him to change his mind.

“No. I didn’t want to have kids because it was not a kind of equation that made sense for me as I went from movie to movie to movie, script to script … It never occurred to me till halfway through E.T.: I was a parent on that film,” he said, per Variety. “I was literally feeling like I was very protective of Henry [Thomas] and Robert [MacNaughton] and my whole cast, and especially Drew [Barrymore], who was only 6 years old.”

Keep scrolling to meet Steven’s current wife and ex-wife.

Amy Irving

Amy, born in 1953, was inspired by her parents to pursue a career in show business, Her father, Jules Irving, was a director and producer. Her mother, Priscilla Pointer, has acted and starred in films like Carrie and Blue Velvet. Amy also appeared in Carrie alongside her mom after attending the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art.

The California native earned an Academy Award nomination for her work in 1984’s Yentl. Five years later, she was nominated for a Golden Globe for her work in Crossing Delancey. Other notable roles include an arc on Alias from 2002 to 2005 and a role on Zero Hour in 2013.

Amy married film director Bruno Barreto in 1996. They welcomed one child together, son Gabriel Barreto, in 1990. The Once an Eagle alum divorced her second husband in 2005. Two years later, she married her third husband, Kenneth Bowser.

Kate Capshaw

After her first marriage ended, Kate decided to keep the last name Capshaw while she continued to find work in Hollywood. Prior to marrying Steven, she appeared in Windy City, Power, Dreamscape and Private Affairs. Her most recent film appearance came in the 2002 television movie Due East before she took a step back from acting.

While Kate is extremely supportive of her hubby and his big projects, she did make it known that she does not think he is cut out to direct a comedy film.

“My wife says I’m not funny enough! I was preparing to direct Meet The Parents when she read the script. She said, ‘You’re not directing this movie — give it to a director who does comedy well,'” the Hollywood icon told Total Film in September 2004. “She doesn’t mind when I have comic moments in my movies, like when Tom Cruise chases his eyeballs towards a drain in Minority Report, but I’m not allowed to do an outright comedy! Still, I produced Meet The Parents and we did very well with it.”

All jokes aside, it seems like Steven and Kate’s relationship is stronger than ever. The lovebirds stepped out for a rare appearance in France in July 2021. They held hands and shared smiles as they took a boat ride through the romantic country.