John Lithgow is riding high. Following his casting as Albus Dumbledore in HBO’s Harry Potter series, the 79-year-old was crowned Best Actor at the 2025 Olivier Awards for his portrayal of Roald Dahl in Giant.
© GettyA performer well-acquainted with both the stage and the screen, John has received multiple Emmys, Golden Globes and Tony Awards in the 53 years since he landed his first film role, and now he can add an Olivier to his trophy case too!
While John is considered a master of his craft and someone who rubs shoulders with Hollywood’s elite, what matters most to the Terms of Endearment star is his family. “The thing in my life that’s most important to me is my wife, my marriage,” he declared to Esquire in March 2025.
© Getty“She’s my other self. Art and my work—I seek out things that move me deeply, as I think everybody does, and I think that that’s my profession. That’s my job.”
Here, we explore John’s private life with his wife, Mary Yeager. Not to mention his role as a father to his three kids – Ian, Phoebe, and Nathan Lithgow.
© GettyMarriage to Jean Tayton and becoming a father
John was previously married to teacher Jean Taynton from 1966 to 1980.
During their relationship, the couple welcomed a son named Ian (pictured above), who has since followed in his father’s footsteps, becoming an actor with roles in 3rd Rock from the Sun (1996-2001), Bull (2017) and Perry Mason (2020).
© GettyAffair with Liv Ullman
While little is known about John and Jean’s love story, they decided to divorce in 1980, after it emerged that the actor had embarked on an affair with Norweigan actress and filmmaker, Liv Ullman (pictured above).
A frequent collaborator of Ingmar Bergman, Liv was “extremely famous” at the time, according to John, having starred in Persona (1966), Scenes from a Marriage (1973), The Passion of Anna (1969), and Autumn Sonata (1978).
During an interview with the New York magazine, John called his infidelity the “neutron bomb” that ended his first marriage and one that forced him to reflect on his life choices.
© GettyFinding love with Mary Yeager
Following his divorce from Jean, John was introduced to Mary Yeager – a now-retired UCLA professor – in 1980. “We were fixed up together when I was out of work. I was rehearsing something in L.A. that shot in Texas and I flew out from New York. And a mutual friend of ours fixed us up,” he told People.
Reflecting on their first date in an interview with The Guardian, John revealed that he wasn’t exactly prepared. “My first marriage had broken down after 10 years,” he explained. “Mary’s also had. She knew of our lunch date, but nobody had told me. There I was, sweaty, in borrowed tennis gear. She looked a picture. It was love at first sight.
“Professors and actors are not supposed to marry. Our lives are so incompatible,” John noted. Just one year after they’d been introduced, John and Mary tied the knot in 1981 and went on to welcome two children: a son, Nathan and a daughter, Phoebe.
© GettyJohn and Mary continue to be a jet-setting couple
Today, the couple owns homes in Los Angeles, New York and Montana, and they regularly see their children and grandchildren. Appearing on the SmartLess podcast in March, John noted that his wife has since retired from teaching but “still researches and writes and goes to conferences”.
“She travels more than I do. She travels all over the world, and I’m a trailing spouse on many occasions,” he quipped. Given that John has just accepted the role of Albus Dumbledore, John and Mary will be spending a great deal of time in England when production commences.
