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Paul Simon reveals why marriage to Carrie Fisher broke down

Wed 27 March 2024 13:20, UK

In previously unseen historic footage, Paul Simon has revealed why his marriage to the late Star Wars actor Carrie Fisher resulted in divorce.

The couple met while Fisher was working on the first Star Wars film in the late 1970s, and they eventually wed in 1984 before divorcing the following year. At the time of their separation, the pair were two of the biggest names in their respective sectors of the entertainment industry, but it ultimately ended 12 months after they signed on the dotted line.

While they later resumed their relationship after finalising their separation, Simon eventually married Edie Brickell in 1992, and the couple is still together today.

This chapter of Simon’s life has been revisited in the new documentary, In Restless Dreams. The film recently premiered at the DGA New York Theater on March 13th before arriving on the streaming platform Max.

In the film, Simon says in footage from an old interview: “In the middle of the reunion tour [with Art Garfunkel], I got married. I married Carrie Fisher.”

Exploring the differences between the pair, Simon admitted: “Carrie was much more show business oriented. I went along with that — that’s the world that she grew up with; she was used to it. She was used to a lot of press and things like that. It wasn’t intimidating or anything. She knew how to manipulate it and make it work for her. She was really good at it, and I wasn’t.”

This notion is reaffirmed in the documentary by Saturday Night Live creator Lorne Michaels, who served as Simon’s best man at his wedding to Fisher, he noted: “There were lots of things that were remarkable about the time, but also it was two people at career peaks, and that’s always complicated. All of it was kind of a whirlwind. Carrie was in a complete fame bubble because of Star Wars.”

Following their divorce in 1984, Simon explains in another interview that is included in the new documentary: “I mean, what was I thinking? Certainly not thinking about life, you know, that you actually like have to stop. Marriage is very… it’s a hard thing to do. You have to concentrate on — not everything can happen at once, not everything is a media event. All types of mistakes on top of mistakes on top of mistakes.”

Although Simon had been married before his union with Fisher, he stated, “I realised I could become exhausted by — I could exhaust myself from emotional upheaval.”

Meanwhile, Simon stopped by The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on March 14th to deliver a contemplative insight into his remarkable journey.

During his conversation with the chat show host, Simon revealed his hatred for the Simon and Garfunkel track, ‘The 59th Bridge Song’. The singer-songwriter said: “I loathe that song. Sometimes in shows, if I made an error in some other song, I would sing that song as punishment. Here’s what it is: I come up to the line, and I just don’t wanna sing, ‘Life, I love you, all is groovy.’ I don’t wanna sing it.”

Watch the trailer for In Restless Dreams below.