The screen legend has been married twice, but to the same man. She first wed Italian film producer Carlo Ponti in 1957, but their marriage was annulled five years later. Carlo had previously been married to Giuliana Fiastri, but they got divorced in the same year that he first swapped vows with Sophia.
Because divorce was still illegal in Italy at the time, Carlo obtained his divorce in Mexico. But, he was told that he would be charged with bigamy if he were to return to Italy.
Carlo and Sophia later denied being married, and they officially received an annulment in 1962.
Sophia, Carlo, and Giuliana moved to France (where divorce was allowed) for citizenship purposes. Carlo’s divorce from Giuliana was finalized in France in 1965, and he officially married Sophia again in 1966.
He helped produce many of the films that Sophia starred in, including Boccaccio ’70, Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow, and Marriage Italian-Style.
The two were not affected by the infamous Hollywood curse, in which celebrity couples get divorced after a few months or years of marriage. They remained together until Carlo’s death in 2007 from pulmonary issues at the age of 94.