Leila George and Sean Penn had a lockdown wedding over a Zoom call.
Yep, you heard that right.
Unfortunately, just a year later, they were signing divorce papers.
It seems when it comes to marriage, Sean Penn can't get them to last very long.
Following his third divorce, we can't help but wonder if anything can be learned from
his first marriage with the legendary Queen of Pop, Madonna.
Hold onto your seat, juicers, because this infamous union was riddled with insecurity,
jealousy, and even jail time.
Let's wind the clock back to 1985.
Madonna was busy filming her music video for "Material Girl" off her album "Like A Virgin,"
that was when she first laid eyes on Sean Penn.
The actor was visiting his former assistant, who was working on the set for the music video
at the time.
As legend has it, Penn got his first glimpse of Madonna, decked out in the dress Marilyn
Monroe made famous in the film "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes."
She was a vision in pink, bursting with charm and charisma and seemingly irresistible.
Penn was hooked, and it seemed like Madonna was just as taken by the actor as he was with
her.
It was love at first sight for the pair, and they immediately hit it off.
They had both just come out of relationships and were enjoying their newly single lives.
So at first, the couple decided to take things slow and date non-exclusively.
But that didn't last very long.
It didn't take long for the pair to take their relationship to the next level, and it soon
blossomed into a full-on-romance.
After just six months of dating, Sean popped the big question, and Madonna said yes.
They said their "I do's" in 1985, and the ceremony was held at a clifftop mansion in
Malibu.
It was an A-list wedding, featuring guests like Tom Cruise, Cher, Martin Sheen, Carrie
Fisher, and more.
The date of their wedding was also significant because it was on the Singer's 27th birthday
no less, and the next day Sean Penn turned 25.
Following their blissful vows, Madonna and Penn took their romance to the big screen
when they starred alongside one another in the 1986 adventure comedy 'Shanghai Surprise,'
and the Singer even dedicated her 1986 True Blue album to her new husband.
It seemed like love was truly in the air, and to the public, the couple looked perfect
together.
Fans thought that this was going to be one of Hollywood's epic unbreakable marriages.
Unfortunately, behind the scenes, things were not as perfect as they seemed to be.
Behind closed doors, the couple's marriage was rife with accusations of infidelity, domestic
violence, and unhappiness.
Although their relationship was off to a good start, it seemed that their marriage brought
out the worst in Sean.
The actor struggled with unpredictable bursts of rage and temper tantrums that would put
a toddler to shame.
Penn had become incredibly jealous of his new wife's fame and couldn't handle all the
attention she received, especially from other men.
However, he should have understood that Madonna's fame was part of the package in their relationship.
In fact, Sean got so mad that he attacked songwriter David Wolinski in a nightclub after
he thought Wolinski had kissed his wife.
He had believed that Madonna had been unfaithful to him, and he had decided to take it out
on David.
As it turned out, Wolinski and Madonna were just good friends, and nothing had happened.
A source said to People Magazine at the time about the couple and the incident, "The marriage
had been undergoing stress all the time, but this was the first major stress, the first
really traumatic episode for Madonna.
Wolinski was someone she knew, and it really shook her up."
The future Oscar winner was fined $1,700 and sentenced to one year of probation for the
attack.
Insiders also revealed that Penn believed Madonna was having an affair with her "Each
Time You Break My Heart" collaborator Nick Kamen . Though she adamantly denied cheating
on Penn with Kamen, seeing them together "made Sean wildly jealous."
But despite his insecurities, Madonna was understanding of Penn's actions and even revealed
that she too has those moments.
"I have my insecure moments," Madonna admitted at one point during the relationship, "and
that puts a lot of strain on people.
You take things out on the person you love, and that causes fights, alienation, grief,
shrink sessions and a lot of ca-ca."
After a year of marriage, Madonna filed for divorce from Penn but later withdrew the papers,
only to file them again in 1989.
While it's unclear if Penn's outbursts prompted the Singer to end their relationship, it's
been rumoured that the Singer suffered years of abuse from her husband, which many believe
was a big reason for their split.
However, it turned out those rumors had no truth to them.
Madonna even set the record straight on the abuse accusations in 2017, insisting that
Penn never laid a hand on her during their marriage.
There was never much evidence to prove the abuse allegations.
The former couple would later both adamantly refute the allegations...but Madonna was vague
when asked if she filed a police report about it.
"I am aware of the allegations that have surfaced over the years accusing Sean of incidents
of physical assault and abuse against me … I know the allegations in those and other reports
to be completely outrageous, malicious, reckless, and false."
The allegations described an event that occurred where Sean had supposedly struck the Singer
with "a baseball bat" in 1987.
However, Madonna explained that the allegations were all false.
On the other hand, she did admit that she and Sean "certainly had more than one heated
argument" during their marriage, but Sean had never physically assaulted her in any
way.
Unfortunately, these allegations weren't Penn's first stint with the law during their marriage.
The actor was accused of attacking two freelance photographers with a rock and ordered to pay
two $50 fines.
Another incident occurred during the filming of Shanghai Surprise with his wife.
The actor was accused of attempted murder, arrested, and jailed—but escaped and was
eventually pardoned.
Just a year later, he was busted for a DUI and days later arrested for allegedly attacking
an extra who he believed tried taking a picture of him and his 'Colors' co-star Robert Duvall
on set.
The attack was so aggressive that the extra was hospitalized for his injuries.
He pleaded his DUI down to reckless driving and was sentenced to 60 days in jail and two
years of probation for the combination of offenses.
We can't be sure, but there's no doubt that all of these instances were red flags for
Madonna.
It couldn't have been easy for her to have her husband in and out of jail, especially
when their busy schedules were already getting in the way of the couple spending time together.
Between their busy careers and Penn's time spent behind bars, Penn and Madge didn't see
each other very often.
Unfortunately, in this case, absence didn't make the heart grow fonder.
A source told People the couple began fighting more often when he got out of prison, leading
a pal to suggest a trial separation.
Madonna reportedly replied, "We're separated all the time, and it doesn't make it any better."
Considering that the actor had chosen a career that involved life in the public eye, he constantly
butted heads with the paparazzi.
It seemed that Sean couldn't handle the spotlight, and his marriage to the Queen of Pop didn't
make it any easier.
During an interview, the actor shared, "When I got in the business I was really culture
shocked...Paparazzi.
I had a lot of that shitt because of my first marriage,"
He added that some people might think that's the price of fame, but being a celebrity doesn't
make you inhuman.
Somehow being stalked by people with cameras all the time, there are some people that tend
to forget that they are following human beings who like to have a sense of privacy just like
anyone else.
"At some point, you might consider homicide, forget about punching somebody in the face.
You want your life!
And people usually get it when you put it in those terms."
He confessed.
While the official reason behind their split remains a mystery, taking a look back at their
complicated and dramatic romance, it seems like their reasons were clear.
Sean couldn't keep himself out of trouble, and it was all too much for Madonna.
We also can't forget their busy schedules, along with Sean's jealousy and short temper.
When you put all of those things together, unfortunately, their marriage was doomed from
the start.
Although Madonna and Penn's marriage came to a tumultuous end in 1989, they have continued
being great friends in the years following.
Not only have they supported each other's respective careers, but they've also spoken
highly of one another during interviews and special events.
In 1991, Madonna released her documentary In Bed With Madonna, where she was asked to
name the love of her life.
She coyly whispered back one single word: "Sean."
So, despite all their drama, the Singer still had a special place for Penn in her heart,
as the love of her life.
We can't help but feel a little sad that things between these two didn't work out, but sometimes
things just aren't meant to be.
When two big personalities clash, there isn't always a happy ending at the end of the story.
But, their love story was epic nonetheless.
As the saying goes, "Better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all."