Hollywood filmmaker Peter Bogdanovich was famous for his blockbuster movies. However, Peter Bogdanovich and Cybill Shepherd, a star actress, often pop up when their illicit affair is mentioned.
Peter Bogdanovich and Polly Platt were quite the power couple in their Hollywood heydays. While he created A-list movies, Platt worked as a costume and production designer. She also co-wrote some of her husband’s films.
However, at the peak of both their careers, Bogdanovich became interested in a young actress, Cybill Shepherd, whom he worked with. Here’s a look through Peter Bogdanovich and Cybill Shepherd’s affair that made his marriage irretrievably broken.
Inside Bogdanovich and Platt’s Marriage
Platt and Bogdanovich were the definitions of a Hollywood power couple. But the movie industry felt their impacts behind the scenes, rather than the big screen. Bogdanovich as a highly-esteemed movie director and Platt as an expert production designer.
The duo met in April 1961 while Platt worked as a costume designer in summer stock. At the time, Bogdanovich was a film critic and programmer at the Museum of Modern Art.
The “Mask” director once shared his account of how he and Platt met, noting that his team was trying to get costume design people. And after Platt came up to him, he liked and hired her.
They soon started living together, and by 1962, the two were married. The “Paper Moon” icons welcomed two children, and they were married until 1971. The woes of their union became public when they worked together on “The Last Picture.”
How Platt and Bogdanovich’s Marriage Ended
Cybill Shepherd, a young and ambitious Hollywood actress, was looking to boost her career to the pinnacle of success. Therefore joining top-rated director Peter Bogdanovich was a great start.
She and some young actors appeared on “The Last Picture Show.” By this time, Platt had already become her spouse’s creative collaborator, and they made blockbuster movies together.
Platt was said to have been the one who pitched for the “The Last Picture Show” film adaptation, and her husband followed through with intense work. It was reportedly a challenging shoot, but the couple worked side by side.
Shepherd was cast in a significant role such that she and Bogdanovich closely worked together. The pair soon started an affair right there on set with Platt, who worked in the production section.
The “Saint Jack” director and Platt soon got separated and lived apart, although they were not divorced. While the pair’s marriage failed, Bogdanovich’s affair with Shepherd blossomed.
The now-late Platt once recalled how “jealous” she felt, watching her husband’s scandalous affair blossom before her eyes. She recalled doing Shepherd’s hair while on set and how tempted she was to mess it up. Platt also remembered cutting parts of it.
Platt was pregnant with their second child when the marriage issues started. And by the time of divorce, she already had the baby. She and Bogdanovich eventually legalized their separation in 1972.
Bogdanovich On His Affair
The A-list filmmaker bared it all in a 2019 interview where he talked about all that ensued in his affair with Shepherd. Bogdanovich noted that he was “very attracted” to the “Taxi Driver” actress.
The Grammy-winning director recalled one of his and Shepherd’s encounters while on the set of “The Last Picture.” He noted how she had come up to him and some of the crew members while they filmed.
Bogdanovich and Shepherd had a conversation that started in a light mood. However, it soon turned sexual as Bogdanovich expressed his interest in the young actress. He recalled saying: “I don’t know who I want to sleep with more, you or [Shepherd’s film character ] Jacy.”
Around the same time he expressed his interest in her, Shepherd was in a relationship with Jeff Bridges. However, Bridges was drafted and away for a few weeks due his military training.
Bogdanovich saw his chance and wooed “The Heartbreak Kid” star. He pointed out to Shepherd that she would be lonely when her lover left for the army. She, in turn, seemed to give him a pass when she mentioned that she was always lonely. Bogdanovich picked the cue from there.
The New York native included that it was hard to keep it from his wife after he and Shepherd started seeing each other. Platt worked as a production designer, and it was not possible that the affair could go unnoticed.
Life After Peter Bogdanovich and Cybill Shepherd’s Affair Ended
Bogdanovich moved on with another affair, finding a much younger actress, Dorothy Stratten. He cast her in “They All Laughed,” and they soon moved in together, in a similar fashion to his affair with Shepherd.
However, their affair was short, and more so, it ended tragically, as Stratten was murdered by her husband, Paul Snider. Her death shook Bogdanovich that he worked towards making her a star posthumously.
His effort ultimately led him to bankruptcy. Bogdanovich recalled being “discombobulated” and “destroyed” following the actress’s death. As for Shepherd, she was married twice and had three children. She took a break from acting because of motherhood but later returned.