No matter if you’ve been a fan of Cillian Murphy since the beginning or you’ve just started following him after his role in Oppenheimer, chances are you know about his successful career, but little about his personal life.
That’s because the actor is notoriously private when it comes to his family.
Well, we’ve got the scoop for you. Keep reading to learn all about his wife Yvonne McGuinness.
The couple met in 1996 when Murphy was just starting off in his career, starring in a play called Disco Pigs.
“That time, making Disco Pigs, was kind of the most important period of my life…The people I met there remain my closest friends….They shaped me in terms of my tastes, in terms of what I wanted to do with my life. And it was around the same time I met my wife,” he told The Guardian in 2016.
McGuinness, who is an artist, was on tour with the cast of Disco Pigs for 18 months.
The two became acquainted and starting dating before tying the knot in 2004. They have two children together: Malachy born in 2005 and Aran born in 2007.
Although Murphy rarely acknowledges his wife in public – they don’t even appear on red carpets together – when he does mention her, Murphy praises her.
In a 2005 interview, Murphy told People his wife was the one who kept him grounded.
“It’s very important to have somebody like that,” he said. “My life hasn’t changed in any way, really. I still have the same friends and we go to the same places.”
While filming Peaky Blinders, Murphy was forced to live separately from his family. He credited his wife with taking care of their children and the household.
Most recently, the award-winning actor thanked his family for their support while accepting the Desert Palm Achievement Award at the Palm Springs International Film Awards this January.
“I don’t ever really get to do this too often, I want to say thanks to my family. Two-thirds of them are sitting down there. We had to leave one of them at home doing exams,” he said.
“But just thanks for putting up with me — putting up with the half me and the shadow me and the absent me, the remains of me when I’m doing a film like this or work in general. You’re always there. I love it. So thanks, guys.”
It’s refreshing to hear about a Hollywood couple who like to keep their personal business private. Not everything needs to be made public.
