Donald Sutherland’s love life: From affair with ‘Klute’ co-star Jane Fonda to his three marriages

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Donald Sutherland died at the age of 88, leaving behind his wife Francine Racette, sons Roeg, Rossif, Angus, and Kiefer, and daughter Rachel. The actor also had four grandchildren. 

Sutherland married three times. His first marriage, to Lois May Hardwick, lasted from 1959 to 1966. His second marriage was to Shirley Douglas. Donald and Shirley were married from 1966 to 1970 and they had two children, twins Kiefer and Rachel.

Following their meeting on the set of 'Alien Thunder,' he later wed Francine Racette, a French Canadian actress and co-star. Together, the couple gave birth to three sons: Roeg Sutherland, Angus Redford Sutherland, and Rossif Sutherland.

Donald Sutherland's first marriage to Lois May Hardwick

Lois Hardwick, Donald's first wife, was someone he met while attending Victoria University in Toronto, Canada. Donald, an aspiring engineer with a love of theater, fell in love with Lois, an 18-year-old former child star, right away. Throughout the 1920s, Lois was a well-known star of the 'Alice Comedies' Disney film series before her career ended in 1929.

After being married in 1959 and spending seven years together, Donald gave up on his ambition to become an engineer and pursued acting instead, which led to the breakdown of their marriage.

Just when his film career began to take off, the budding Hollywood star filed for divorce from Lois in 1966.

Donald Sutherland's second marriage to actress Shirley Douglas

Soon after Donald and Lois parted ways, the actor married Shirley, the actress daughter of Canadian politician Tommy Douglas, who is best recognized for having founded the country's universal healthcare program.

She gave birth to their twins, Kiefer and Rachel, a few months later. Shirley's most well-known performances were in the science fiction series 'The Silver Surfer', 'Wind at My Back' and Stanley Kubrick's 'Lolita'.

However, their relationship was shattered when rumors circulated that Donald was having an affair with Jane Fonda, his co-star in 'Klute'. Shirley passed away in 2020 at the age of 86 due to pneumonia-related complications.

Donald Sutherland's affair with Jane Fonda

At the height of their careers, Jane and Donald were both involved in a romantic affair.

The two remained silent about their relationship until Donald eventually told Rolling Stone about it years later.

In a 2018 interview, he acknowledged that he and Jane were "lovers for a few years". adding that their brief romance started right before Klute's filming got underway. And as it happens, even though he was married, Jane was the one who started it.

After Donald's death on June 20, Fonda even shared a black-and-white photograph of a younger Sutherland from their 1971 hit film, which won her the Oscar for best actress.

“I am heartbroken,” she captioned the Instagram post.

"He was my fascinating co-star in 'Klute' and we loved working together,” 'Barbarella' star Fonda said.

She added, "Donald was a brilliant actor and a complex man who shared quite a few adventures with me, such as the FTA Show, an anti-Vietnam war tour that performed for 60,000 active duty soldiers, sailors, and marines in Hawaii, Okinawa, the Philippines, and Japan in 1971.”

Donald Sutherland's third marriage with Francine Racette 

After getting close to French-Canadian actress Francine while filming 'Alien Thunder,' Donald tied the knot for the third time with her in 1972, so it appears that things with Jane eventually burned out.

Their sons Roeg (1974), Rossif (1978), and Angus (1982) were later welcomed into the family. While Rossif went on to become an actor and starred in films such as 'ER', 'Crossing Lines', 'Poor Boy' and 'River', Roeg is currently employed as a talent agent and producer.

Donald's youngest son Angus briefly dabbled in acting but he now works as a producer. Donald and Francine stayed together until his death.