Emma Thompson: Husband’s affair with Helena Bonham Carter inspired wronged wife scene in Love Actually

Emma Thompson has revealed that she channeled her husband’s betrayal into her famous scene in Love Actually.

emmathompsonweb

by Closer staff |
Published on

In the film, Emma, 54, plays someone who suspects her husband is cheating. It was revealed that her partner Kenneth Branagh was having an affair with Helena Bonham Carter in 1995.

Emma said: “I’ve had so much bloody practice at crying in the bedroom, then having to go out and be cheerful, gathering up the pieces of my heart and putting them in a drawer.”

Despite this, Emma has admitted that she’s made her peace with Harry Potter actress Helena, and said that she’s a ‘wonderful woman’.

Oscar-wining actress Emma said: “It’s pointless. I haven’t got the energy for it. Helena and I made our peace years and years ago.”

Kenneth and Helena are believed to have started their affair in 1994
Kenneth and Helena are believed to have started their affair in 1994

She even spoke about the similarities between herself and Helena, admitting they may have been the reason she appealed to Kenneth.

“[We are both] slightly mad and a bit fashion-challenged. Perhaps that’s why Ken loved us both. She’s a wonderful woman, Helena.”

Kenneth and Helena are believed to have started their affair in 1994, when they both starred in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, which Kenneth also directed. Their relationship lasted until 1999.

Kenneth spoke about his break-up from Emma in 1998, saying: “It’s always sad, marriages breaking up. But I refuse to be affected over issues like this by how the world at large appears to feel.”

Emma married actor and director Greg Wise, after they met in 1995. The couple have two children.

Watch Emma’s moving scene in Love Actually below.

Comment below for your chance to win a £25 supermarket voucher

Just so you know, we may receive a commission or other compensation from the links on this website - read why you should trust us