Branagh and Thompson married in 1989, and frequently collaborated together in movies that Branagh directed, including "Henry V," "Dead Again," "Peter's Friends," and "Much Ado About Nothing," which was their last project together before divorcing in 1995.
At the time, there were rumors of a relationship between Branagh and his "Mary Shelley's Frankenstein" co-star Carter, but it was unclear when their dalliance began. Carter and Branagh were together publicly until 1999.
Thompson has spoken a few times about the affair, including in a 2013 interview where she confirmed that it was an affair — but there's no bad blood. "You can't hold on to anything like that. It's pointless," she told the Sunday Times. "I haven't got the energy for it. Helena and I made our peace years and years ago." She added that Carter is a "wonderful woman."
In 2018, Thompson told The Telegraph that one of the most famous (and heartbreaking) scenes from holiday classic "Love Actually," when her character finds out her husband is having an affair and breaks down in her bedroom, was based on reality.
"I had my heart very badly broken by Ken. So I knew what it was like to find the necklace that wasn't meant for me ... I've had so much bloody practice at crying in a bedroom, then having to go out and be cheerful, gathering up the pieces of my heart and putting them in a drawer," she said.
