The third time is the charm for some people. It’s not, though, for Kelly McGillis.
The third marriage of the Top Gun actress Kelly McGillis, to Melanie Leis, lasted the least amount of time.
Many people thought McGillis and Leis would endure the test of time because of the ups and downs they had together. They were as strong as anticipated.
Leis even referred to her ex-spouse as her “true love” in an INTIX interview. Leis remarked, “Today I say it with perfect truthfulness. A couple of years ago, I never dreamed I would say that so readily.
But after only a year of marriage, the couple decided to divorce.
Kelly McGillis and Her Third Spouse Struggled with Substance Abuse
At Kelly’s, which the actress co-owned with her ex-husband Fred Tillman, they first spoke in 2000.
Kelly McGillis (Pinterest)Leis described the interaction, saying, “I started working at the restaurant while Kell was out of town working on a movie. I noticed her as I raised my head one day. I didn’t catch a glimpse of her from across the room or anywhere else.
She continued by saying she had no idea she was an actress and that she had been struck by McGillis’ wicked sense of humor during their conversation.
The two women attended their friend’s birthday one evening. As they became more intimate, McGillis became interested in Leis. They soon began dating, although it wasn’t the best kind of connection.
Together, they abused alcohol and narcotics. McGillis found solace in drugs and drinking as she dealt with the pain of being raped in 1982 while a Juilliard student.
She believed that being gay was making her suffer. For the benefit of the two daughters of McGillis, the couple soon realized they could not continue living that way.
However, living in Mohnton, Pennsylvania, was not as simple as they had anticipated. McGillis kept working, but her relationship with Leis had an impact on her children’s lives.
Kelly McGillis (Pinterest)Kelly divorced her Partner
The children of McGillis embraced her partner, but their peers and the parents of their friends were not as accepting.
She came out as homosexual and stated why she wanted to be open and honest about her sexual orientation in a February 2009 interview with SheWired.com.
However, she and Leis had split up by this point. They agreed their relationship “was no longer working” and split up a few months prior.
“We developed and evolved at various rates and intervals. With all of my heart and soul, I’ve always wanted to be with Mell, but after a while, I realized that I couldn’t stay with her unless she was willing to work on herself, according to McGillis.
Leis acknowledged she had difficulties addressing and referred to the breakup as “the worst time of her life.”
Leis pleaded with McGillis for another chance, knowing she had erred. And McGillis, who had still not recovered from Leis, gave in, and the two got married.
They promised to cherish one another, but sadly, rumors that the couple had split up appeared in 2011.
Nobody knows why, and there haven’t been any rumors that the pair had moved on to a new relationship.