William Shatner's Four Turbulent Marriages and His Unexpected Current Love at 94
William Shatner has led a remarkable life, both on screen and off and his personal relationships have played a big part in it.
The 94-year-old star has been married four times and his love life has garnered significant public interest over the years.
So, who were the women who said "I do" to the Star Trek l egend and who is he dating now?
Gloria Rand
William's first marriage was to Canadian actress Gloria Rand. They tied the knot in 1956, before his rise to global fame as Captain James. T, Kirk. The couple had three daughters: Leslie, Lisabeth, and Melanie. Their marriage lasted 13 years but ended in divorce in 1969, the same year Star Trek: The Original Series aired its final episode.
William reflected on this period, describing the marriage as "lopsided" in his 2008 autobiography "Up Till Now". He acknowledged his own difficulties with relationships due to his intense work schedule and said he "wasn't good at being married."
"I was working so hard to support my family," he wrote. "And resented Gloria because I was getting so little joy out of my marriage.
"She resented me for probably many reasons. So Gloria stayed home with our girls and it seemed like each week new and beautiful — and seemingly available — women showed up on the set."
Marcy Lafferty
His second wife was actress Marcy Lafferty whom he married in 1973. They met on the set of The Andersonville Trial and their heir union lasted for 23 years, with their divorce finalized in 1996.
During their marriage, they shared a love for breeding horses, and Marcy was instrumental in helping to raise William's three daughters.
William described Marcy as having a "wonderful sense of humor," but their relationship wasn't to last. In December 1996 their marriage ended in a "relatively amicable" divorce. They had an unusual clause in their divorce settlement as Marcy requested that she would receive horse semen from three of William's prize stallions every year.
Much of William's fortune was invested in his horse breeding and so this was a form of payment.
Nerine Kidd
Tragedy struck William's third marriage to model and actress Nerine Kidd. They tied the knot in 1997 but her struggle with alcoholism, a battle William has openly discussed, had an unsettling impact.
William noted that friends and family, including his Star Trek co-star and good friend Leonard Nimoy , urged him not to marry her due to her addiction.
Despite her efforts in rehab, her life was tragically cut short in August 1999 when she accidentally drowned in the swimming pool at their Los Angeles home. Her death was ruled an accidental drowning after consuming a cocktail of alcohol and valium.
Her death profoundly impacted William, who went on to establish the Nerine Shatner Foundation, a charity dedicated to assisting women recovering from chemical dependency.
William called her his "soulmate" and "the love of his life."
Elizabeth Anderson Martin
In 2001, William found love again and married Elizabeth Anderson Martin, a horse trainer and photographer who is 27 years his junior. Their shared passion for horses was a significant bond and their marriage lasted 18 years.
He told The Guardian of his wife: "That combination of beauty, style, intelligence, humor and loving horses and dogs and children and loving her home and making a home for us, is quite a combination.
William added: "So I've been very lucky because all that happened by accident. Love is what makes the cold universe warm."
But those feelings didn't last and William filed for divorce in December 2019. It was finalized in March 2020.
His partner today
Despite ending his almost two-decade-long romance with Elizabeth, the pair have since reunited.
“My little secret is I’m living with my former wife," he told Parade i n 2024. "We've in effect remarried. But we haven't done another ceremony."
When quizzed as to whether they had plans to make it official, he gave a cryptic answer. "I don’t think so, for a number of reasons. The reasons we divorced were many, but none of them had to do with distaste. It had to do with more practical things that I want to avoid happening [again], so that's what I did."
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