Dominic West has addressed the aftermath of those 2020 photos of him purportedly kissing Lily James.
Nearly four years after photos of Dominic West and Lily James' PDA emerged while he was married to someone else, the Affair star has made rare comments about that "absurd situation."
In an interview with The Sunday Times, the Wire alum, who recently portrayed Prince Charles on The Crown, addressed the similarities he experienced playing a character whose personal life was exposed in the press.
"I'd had a very acute understanding of what it's like to feel the horror of your name or your photograph coming up in the newspapers. There is that dreadful freezing moment when something is being revealed about you," he told the newspaper. "I think anyone can understand how that feels. But I'd been through it a couple of years previously and it must have informed how I approached it. That gut feeling of horror isn't something you get inured to."
What West seemed to be referring to was in October 2020, when pictures were published of him in Rome with his Pursuit of Love co-star, James, and without a wedding ring on. In one photo, he was purported to have been kissing James' neck. In other shots, they were pictured riding a scooter together and at a restaurant together with West's hand on James' head.
A day after the photos made headlines, West and his wife, Catherine FitzGerald -- who he dated in college and married in 2010 -- stepped outside of their England home together and kissed in front of paparazzi. A note they handed out to photographers read, "Our marriage is strong and we're very much still together. Thank you."
At the time, an eyewitness told ET that the couple posed for photographs outside their home for two to three minutes for five photographers and a reporter. Stated FitzGerald, "Our marriage is still strong."
"It did seem like they were putting on a show for photographers, but it was not awkward," the eyewitness said. "They both looked very happy."
The couple had reached their 10-year wedding anniversary that June and share four children: Dora, Senan -- who portrayed Prince William on The Crown -- Francis and Christabel. West is also dad to daughter Martha from a previous relationship.
Now years later, West revealed that they can poke fun at that time now despite how difficult the situation was. "I hesitate to speak on my wife's behalf because it was obviously horrible, particularly for her," he told The Sunday Times. "But we do joke about it sometimes. Because whenever we went out together, the papers would always say we were 'putting on a show of unity.' Even if we'd just been rowing about parking the car or whatever, even if that couldn't be further from the truth. And so when we go out we do sort of say, 'Shall we go and have a show of unity up in London?'"
Jokes aside, the actor acknowledged, "It was an absurd situation. It was deeply stressful for my wife and my kids, but there were lighter moments... That was the best that came out of it, really."
The husband and wife have continued to be by each other's side, recently being photographed as a family with their four children at the season 5 world premiere of The Crown in November 2022. A year later, they were snapped on a night out together at an opening party in London.
RELATED CONTENT:
