Dennis Quaid he did not “want” romance when he met a wife Laura Savoiebut faith eventually brought the couple together — and God has remained an integral part of their marriage ever since.
“God is in our relationship [had] it never even occurred to me before,” Quaid, 71, shared exclusively in the latest issue of Us Weekly while discussing his new film, I Can Only Think 2. “I thought, ‘I have a relationship with God, and so did he,’ but for God to be a third part of the relationship is a new idea. But it really is.”
I The Parent Trap The star met Savoie, 32, in Las Vegas and proposed in October 2019, and they tied the knot the following year. Quaid, who was married three times before meeting Savoie, explained that the couple’s shared faith is a key part of what helps maintain a healthy relationship.
“Otherwise you will end up doing someone else,” he explained. “You are looking to someone else to solve your problems, we are not equipped to do that, we have many things, the burden comes. [to a relationship]and these are the things you need as a professional [to deal with] – and that would be God.” (Quaid was married to her PJ Soles from 1978 to 1983, Meg Ryan from 1991 to 2001 again Kimberly Buffington from 2004 to 2018.)
Although God’s presence in his marriage is a new area for Quaid, his faith has been “always” with him both in his personal life and in his professional work. He made his foray into faith-based content with 2011’s Soul Surfer before being cast in 2018’s I Can Only Imagine as. Arthur Millardthe abusive father of the MercyMe frontman Bart Millard.
It’s a role Quaid admits he was “uncomfortable” playing, especially as a father himself. The actress shares sons Jack Quaid, 33, and Ryan, 64, and twins Thomas and Zoe, 18, and Buffington, 53.
“The way [Bart’s] my father was there, regardless of the season, even from that time, [was] they are very abusive, almost criminals,” explained Quaid.
I Can Only Imagine tells the true story of how Bart wrote the now famous title track and founded the Christian group MercyMe in the early 2000s after finding inspiration in his tumultuous and estranged relationship with his father. Things changed for the couple, however, when Arthur revealed that he was terminally ill with cancer, and the two explored how to reconcile before Arthur’s death.
Quaid returns as Arthur in I Can Only Think 2debuts in theaters on Friday, February 20. The actor said it was important to him to “finish the story the right way,” noting that the second film feels more like a “continuation” than a traditional sequel. The film also gives audiences a chance to experience some of Bart and Arthur’s funniest moments, as well as a better look at Arthur’s release.
“Arthur’s part was very interesting to me, and it’s probably the No. 1 movie that people come up to me in airports and whisper that they really like it,” Quaid told us while praising director Andrew Erwin. “And I just wanted to be a part of it in that sense.”
Quaid sensed some defensiveness from Arthur, who he felt was “sincere” in his efforts to mend his relationship with his estranged son. “I rarely find that people can really change,” he explained. It really takes a lot to do that. And I think that is possible only with the help of God.”
He went on to say, “It’s hard to ask for something you don’t think you deserve, but [Arthur] and Bart, not immediately, develop a sweet relationship in the end. It broke the chain of abuse. That is the gift that Arthur can give us.”
Quaid noted that the “real” Bart was on set during filming, an added challenge for him to bring out some of the singer’s most poignant childhood memories.
“You know, you’re watching all these scenes on the monitor in the next room of the horror scenes,” Quaid said, adding that he was grateful to have the singer there. “He was very open and honest with me, which I really appreciated.”
The Quaid, of course, doesn’t begin to present realistic figures. He played the likes of astronaut Gordon Cooper, rock singer Jerry Lee Lewis and Ronald Reagan in his decades-long career, among many others.
“Actually I like to play real people, real stories. Real stories are great, because if they were fiction, you wouldn’t believe it,” Quaid told us. “I feel like our responsibility to the person I’m playing is to play the way they see it. No one thinks of themselves as a villain or as a hero really. It’s just trying to get down to someone’s mind.”
“I know that if someone were to play a movie for me, I would at least want it to be my view of my life,” he added with a laugh.
I Can Only Think 2 will hit theaters on Friday, February 20.
