Courtney B. Vance Shares The Secret To Maintaining His Nearly 30-Year Marriage With Angela Bassett
Marriage is often a bumpy ride that few people stay on. Actors Angela Bassett and Courtney B. Vance are still on the ride, almost 30 years in. During an exclusive interview with PEOPLE, Vance shared the secret to his nearly 30-year marriage. The actor attended the world premiere of his new movie, Lilo & Stitch, at the El Capitan Theatre in Los Angeles.
“It’s really about when my wife is happy, the land is happy,” Vance, 65, said. “So I just try to [go], ‘Does this work for you, baby?’ It doesn’t work … we’re not doing that.”
Courtney and Angela married in 1997 and have been two peas in a pod since. In addition to being lovers, they’re also parents to fraternal twins, Bronwyn Golden and Slater Josiah, born in 2006.
Vance also added that respect is paramount in their relationship’s success. “And I think it’s the mutual respect,” he said. The actor also shared the importance of communicating their authentic thoughts and feelings about any potential big decisions.
“You gotta talk about [it] and figure out which way … [you] want to go.”
During the red carpet interview with PEOPLE, Vance also shared an update on his 19-year-old twins, who are gradually transitioning into adulthood. Both are in college and seem to be following in their parents’ footsteps and dabbling in the entertainment world.
“They’ve finished their freshman year. They’re exploring, as they should,” he says. “But both of them are doing some film work. And my daughter may major in film with sociology. And my son’s doing a lot of different things … doing plays, doing films, doing camera work.”
He continued, “I just want them to be happy, as does my wife. If it’s in the business, [if] it’s not — just find something that makes you get up in the morning,” he added.
The couple initially met as college students in Yale’s drama school in the ‘80s but lost contact until 1994, when they reconnected. According to their 2007 book Friends: A Love Story, after their first kiss, Bassett knew Vance was the one.
“I got pinpricks and chills up the back of my thighs and across my butt, up my neck and across my scalp,” she wrote in the book.
