Michelle Pfeiffer and John Malkovich costarred in 1988's Dangerous Liaisons. The film, which contemplates themes such as deception and betrayal, also proved to be the home of the pair's short-lived but potent affair — a relationship that brought about the end of John's marriage to Glenne Headly.
Though the relationship didn't last long, it certainly had an impact on many of the people involved, including the director of the movie that John and Michelle starred in.
Director Stephen Frears once explained to The New York Times that the affair was pretty devastating. He said, "And during the movie, he was having an affair with Michelle Pfeiffer. Dangerous Liaisons is about betrayal and lies and relationships unraveling."
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Stephen continued, "It was one of those times where reality and art intersect. It was overwhelming to John. Even for a man who delights in bad behavior, that was a difficult time."
For his part, it seems that John has totally blocked much of the relationship. In 2008, he told Rolling Stone, "It's hard to believe Michelle Pfeiffer ever said hello to me."
He continued, "Not that she's not memorable, God knows. But I sort of blocked it out. What I'm trying to say is when I think of the other person, I don't think of me as involved with them. They're incorrupted by me. As if they were never troubled by my existence."
Some believe that the affair wasn't exactly what ended the marriage between John and Glenne. As the Daily Mail later noted, the two seemed to have problems before the relationship began, and they both went on to meet other partners.
Glenne went on to marry Byron McCulloch, whom she met in 1992. The pair had one child together and were married until her passing in 2017.
John met his longtime partner Nicoletta Peyran in 1989, and the two are still together to this day. For her part, Michelle went on to marry her second husband, David E. Kelley, in 1993.
