When the wizarding world collides with real-life dramas, there are twists and turns worthy of any magic book. This time it’s about Kenneth Branagh, the actor behind Gilderoy Lockhart, who somehow managed to turn his private life into a Harry Potter-like soap opera. Not only has he cast a curse of infidelity, but he has also become entangled in a love triangle.
Kenneth Branagh married Emma Thompson, the actress who played the ever-enchanting Sybil Trelawney, in 1989 and apparently cheated on her with Helena Bonham Carter, the psychotic Death Eater Bellatrix Lestrange. Well, if you thought magical dramas were dark and complex, you were obviously not aware of the Harry Potter The antics of the actors off the screen!
Kenneth Branagh’s love triangle with Emma Thompson and Helena Bonham Carter
In a wild story straight out of JK Rowling’s magical drama, a few Harry Potter The actors turned out to be as charming and turbulent as a Quidditch match in the Muggle world. Long before he appeared in the billion-dollar franchise, Kenneth Branagh, the charming Gilderoy Lockhart with his notoriously questionable memory, found himself in a love triangle with Emma Thompson and Helena Bonham Carter.
According to reports from The IndependentKenneth Branagh first met the ethereal Emma Thompson in 1987, while filming the BBC series Fortune of war. Branagh and Thompson then dated for two years and married in 1989. Soon after, the couple appeared in several films together, including the 1991 film Dead again, Henry V., And Much ado about nothing.
Unfortunately, Kenneth Branagh and Emma Thompson’s marriage did not last long and the couple eventually announced their separation in 1995. Although the couple initially released a joint statement citing their differing work schedules as the reason for the marriage’s failure, it was later revealed that Branagh was actually having an affair with Helena Bonham Carter.
Our work inevitably meant that we spent long periods of time apart, and as a result we grew apart.the statement about The New York Times.
Damn! The plot intensified when Kenneth Branagh’s heart was stolen by none other than Helena Bonham Carter, the dark sorceress who brought Bellatrix Lestrange to life with gleeful malice. Well, although Emma Thompson initially claimed to have known nothing about this affair, she later admitted that she was heartbroken by Branagh’s infidelity. Surprisingly, the wise and fickle Sybil Trelawney did not foresee this in one of her prophecies.
The Harry Potter Actress Helena Bonham Carter surprisingly forgave
Talk to The New Yorker, Emma Thompson later revealed that the real reason for the divorce was the discovery of her husband’s affair with Helena Bonham Carter, who starred in his film Mary Shelley’s FrankensteinThompson recalled her emotional state after learning of Kenneth Branagh’s affair, claiming she was “half alive” During this time.
I was completely blind to the fact that he was having relationships with other women on set. What I learned was how easy it is to be blinded by your own desire to deceive yourself. I was half alive. Any sense of being a lovable or valuable person had completely disappeared.
But soon the actor Greg Wise entered Emma Thompson’s life during filming Sense and Sensibilitywhich apparently helped the actress overcome her heartbreak. Thompson and Wise were together for eight years after that, until they married in 2003. As for Kenneth Branagh’s relationship with Helena Bonham Carter, the couple were together for five years before splitting up in 1999.
Surprisingly, the three actors were somehow connected by fate when they all worked on the film adaptation of JK Rowling’s Harry Potter Novels. Can you imagine the tension that would arise on the set if Emma Thompson were to face her adulteress Helena Bonham Carter? But surprisingly, nothing of the sort happened, because Thompson realized that she had overcome her grief and forgiven Branagh and Carter.
According to Emma Thompson’s interview with The Telegraph In 2013, the actress admitted that she had forgiven Carter before crossing paths with her. Proving that the magic of forgiveness is stronger than hate, Thompson, always a model of grace, admitted that she had made peace with her. Harry Potter Co-star Helena Bonham Carter, who made a lasting impression as one of Voldemort’s most loyal followers.
Oh, that’s us. We’re a little crazy and we don’t know anything about fashion. Maybe that’s why Ken loved us both… Helena and I made our peace many years ago.
While the wizarding world is full of charming rivalries and extremely serious battles, the Muggle world offered a refreshing interpretation, with Emma Thompson handling her personal turmoil and her husband’s affair with Helena Bonham Carter with a touch of elegance. Perhaps the Muggle world created a greater spell of “Move on and make peace“, that was missing in the wizarding world.
The Harry Potter Movies are currently available to watch on Max.
