Robert forrest married to gena rowlands

Gena Rowlands had an illustrious acting career, but one of her biggest roles in life was being a mom. 

The late actress, who died at age 94 on Aug. 14, was the mother of three children, Nick, Alexandra and Zoe Cassavetes, whom she shared with her late husband, filmmaker John Cassavetes.

The couple was married for over 30 years before his death in February 1989. Rowlands later found love again as she married retired businessman Robert Forrest in 2012, who became stepfather to Rowlands’ kids. 

Nick, Alexandra and Zoe have all followed in their famous parents' footsteps in the entertainment industry. In addition to acting like their mother, they have also forged careers as directors. Notably, Nick directed his mom in the Nicholas Sparks adaptation of The Notebook in 2004, where she played an older Allie.

Here’s everything to know about Rowlands’ children.

Gena Rowlands' Life and Career in Pictures

Nick Cassavetes 

Nick Cassavetes is Rowlands and Cassavetes’ oldest child and only son, who was born on May 21, 1959. Growing up in the spotlight, Nick spent much of his childhood on sets and appeared in his father’s film Husbands in 1970. 

As he grew older, he decided to try a different career path and attended Syracuse University on a basketball scholarship. However, after a career-ending injury, he enrolled in his parents' alma mater, the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York. 

While Nick has acted in several films through the years, including Face/Off, The Wraith and Life, he is well known for his directing career, notably helming My Sister's Keeper and The Notebook. On the latter project, he was able to work with his mom, who played older Allie.

Rowlands' children later joined her for The Notebook premiere at the Deauville American Film Festival in September 2004.

Over the years, Nick has attended many events alongside hi

On August 14, Hollywood icon Gena Rowlands passed away after a long battle with Alzheimer's disease at her home in California at the age of 94.

The office of her son Nick confirmed the news, saying she had peacefully died from complications of the disease. He had previously revealed in July that she had been suffering from Alzheimer's for the past five years.

As Hollywood mourns her loss, we take a look back at her legacy through her family, including her two marriages and her three children who've followed their parents into the spotlight…

Her marriage to John Cassavetes

Gena met actor and filmmaker John Cassavetes at the American Academy at Carnegie Hall when Gena was auditioning to enter and John was graduating, and they eventually tied the knot on March 9, 1954, after only four months of dating.

Over the course of two decades, the renowned Hollywood couple collaborated on ten films, several of which were directed by John, and some of which they simply starred in together.

Between 1963 to 1984, their most memorable collaborations include Faces (1968), which earned three Oscar nominations; A Woman Under the Influence (1974), which earned Gena her first Best Actress Oscar nod; Opening Night (1977); Gloria (1980), which earned her a second Best Actress nomination; Tempest (1982), which was Molly Ringwald's film debut; and Love Streams (1984).

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They were seen as an industry power couple, well known for taking experimental risks with not only their collaborations, but also their personal projects, particularly John's acting roles with films like Rosemary's Baby (1968) and The Dirty Dozen (1967).

Several of the films they made were shot and edited in their own Los Angeles home.

Robert Forrest, the widower of the late Gena Rowlands, has died. Just weeks after the four-time Emmy and two-time Golden Globe Award-winning actress’s death at the age of 94, her son, film director Nick Cassavetes, revealed that Forrest passed away.

“Rest well, Robert. I couldn’t have loved you more if you were my own dad…” Cassavetes captioned a photo of the late Forrest shared to Instagram on Aug. 30. He did not disclose further information, including Forrest’s cause of death.

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News of his passing was met with messages of condolence, with one person writing, “sending my love, Nick. This must be so hard for you.” Somebody else commented, “Man. Lots of transitions.. sending you so much love. I get it, hearts don’t like to be separated.. these bodies get in the way sometimes.” A third person added, “Im so sorry, sending love and light RIP.”

Forrest was the second husband of Rowlands. The pair had been close friends and sparked romance in the ’90s following the death of Rowlands’ first husband, John Cassavetes, according to The Wall Street Journal, which described Forrest as “Rowlands’s trusted and protective companion.” After marking their first major appearance together at 1995’s Cannes Film Festival and later going on to appear together at other major events, including premieres for Rowlands’ films The Notebook and Hysterical Blindness, per Hello!, the couple married in 2012 and remained together until her death on Aug. 15 at 94. Her son confirmed her passing at the time, sharing that his mother passed away peacefully at her home in California from complications of Alzheimer’s disease.

Her passing came shortly after Cassavetes revealed that she had been living with Alzheimer’s for the past five years, similar to her character in The Notebook. In the 2004 film, Rowlands played an older v