Michelle Pfeiffer is celebrating 33 years of marriage to David E. Kelley with a rare glimpse of the couple together. The actress, 68, marked their anniversary on Friday, November 13, by sharing an Instagram selfie and an affectionate message to her husband.
“33 years around the sun with this beautiful man. And 33 years of being the luckiest girl in the room,” she wrote alongside the photograph of herself and Kelley, 70.
The picture was taken the previous evening at the Museum of Modern Art’s Film Benefit honoring Steven Spielberg in New York City, according to PEOPLE. The pair smiled together while seated among other guests.
Pfeiffer wore a sleeveless black Chanel gown with sparkling embellishments and green drop earrings, with her blonde hair falling in loose waves. Kelley appeared beside her in a black suit, white shirt and dark tie.
A Night Out With Hollywood Friends
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The guest list included Robert De Niro, Martin Scorsese, Cate Blanchett, Michelle Williams and Drew Barrymore. Vogue described Tom Cruise’s surprise appearance during the program and Bruce Springsteen’s performance of “Dancing in the Dark” as dessert was served.
Now in its 18th year, the benefit was presented with Chanel. MoMA says proceeds support its film department, including the acquisition and preservation of films and the museum’s exhibitions.
The Blind Date She Nearly Canceled
By January 1993, Pfeiffer had grown tired of disappointing blind dates. Her best friend persuaded her to try again with Kelley, but just before leaving home, the actress learned that her friend had never actually met him. Recalling the discovery at a May 30 event for The Madison, she told PEOPLE that her immediate response was, “I’m not coming.”
She eventually agreed to a group outing at Chez Jay in Santa Monica. Both were reserved and barely spoke, while Kelley spent time chatting with Pfeiffer’s sister, Dedee. Pfeiffer later recalled on The Tonight Show that she wondered whether the two of them might be a better match.
Her suggestion that Kelley date her sister met resistance from the friend who had arranged the evening. Two days later, he called Pfeiffer. As HELLO! recounted from her 2023 interview with Drew Barrymore, their telephone conversation lasted an hour.
Parenthood Came Early in Their Relationship
Pfeiffer had begun adoption proceedings before meeting Kelley, and her daughter Claudia Rose arrived in March 1993. The couple married on November 13 that year, and Kelley adopted Claudia. Their son, John Henry, was born in August 1994.
Speaking to Good Housekeeping in 2007, Pfeiffer said those early months allowed her to see how Kelley responded to the responsibilities of parenting. She felt that learning about each other as parents took some pressure off their developing romantic relationship.
In a May 2012 interview with Parade, she identified respect as essential to their marriage. Pfeiffer praised Kelley’s integrity, intelligence and humor, explaining that attraction alone would not sustain a partnership without admiration for the other person.
They Reconsidered Keeping Work Separate
Although Kelley wrote and produced Pfeiffer’s 1996 film To Gillian on Her 37th Birthday, they generally kept their careers separate. In a 2022 appearance on Fallon’s show, she explained that both were fiercely committed to their work. She valued coming home to a supportive partner who had not been involved in the day’s professional disagreements.
That approach changed with Margo’s Got Money Troubles, Kelley’s adaptation of Rufi Thorpe’s novel, which premiered on Apple TV on April 15. Pfeiffer played Shyanne Millet, the mother of Elle Fanning’s Margo, alongside a cast that included Nicole Kidman and Nick Offerman.
During her August 20 return to The Tonight Show, Pfeiffer said reading the novel persuaded her to take the role. She described working with Kelley as effortless, praising the writing and noting that he rarely visited the set, according to Us Weekly.
The collaboration earned her two 2026 Emmy nominations. The Television Academy lists her nominations for supporting actress in a comedy series and, as an executive producer, outstanding comedy series. Kelley had his own description of the casting decision, Pfeiffer accepting the part was the “second luckiest yes” he had received from her.
