The Oscar-winning director was previously married to actress Linda Hamilton, filmmaker Kathryn Bigelow, producer Gale Anne Hurd, and lawyer Sharon Williams.

James Cameron reveals the important lesson he’s learned about marriage after 4 divorces

The Oscar-winning director was previously married to actress Linda Hamilton, filmmaker Kathryn Bigelow, producer Gale Anne Hurd, and lawyer Sharon Williams.

By Shania Russell

Shania Russell

Shania Russell is a news writer at *, *with five years of experience. Her work has previously appeared in SlashFilm and Paste Magazine.

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February 16, 2026 4:00 p.m. ET

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James Cameron attends the China premiere of film "Avatar: Fire and Ash" on December 8, 2025. Credit:

VCG/VCG via Getty

After four divorces, James Cameron has found the key to a happy marriage.

The *Avatar: Fire and Ash* director addressed his relationship history head-on during a recent visit to the* In Depth With Graham Bensinger* podcast, sharing that he now understands marriage to be a "learned art." Cameron, who has now been married to former actress Suzy Amis since 2000, added that while he has "admired and loved" each of his past spouses, there's a reason that those relationships did not stand the test of time.

Before Amis, Cameron was first married to lawyer Sharon Williams from 1978 to 1984. He then married entertainment producer Gale Anne Hurd from 1985 to 1989; Academy Award-winning director Kathryn Bigelow from 1989 to 1991; and actress Linda Hamilton from 1997 to 1999.

"Let's contextualize that," Cameron replied when Bensinger brought up his marriage history. He then pointed out that for each of his first four marriages, he was "actively married" for "less than a year."

james Cameron and ex-wife Linda Hamilton in 1998.

SGranitz/WireImage

"There was always a long sort of decay curve through separation and divorce, but actively married, cohabitating for one year, four times," he said. "So I wasn't very good at it."

He continued, "Now I've been married happily and have earned that happiness, which you find out that you have to work at it for 25 years, and going strong and looking forward to the next 25 years. So, I think it's a learned art."

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Cameron, who shares three children with Amis, said that he now understands that a key part of a successful marriage is "constantly learning about the other person" and making "a pact with yourself to actively want to make them happy."

As for where his prior relationships went wrong, the *Terminator* director named himself as the "common denominator" of his ended marriages.

James Cameron and wife, Suzy Amis Cameron.

Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic

"I could unpack each one individually and they were all different learning curves and they were all different experiences," he said. "Linda Hamilton and I hung on for a long time. Long, long after we probably should have. We were together for seven years and we loved each other. We just didn't get along."

Cameron continued, "I fall in love with people I can learn from. So I fall in love with somebody that I admired greatly. I admired Gale greatly. I admired Kathryn greatly. I admired Linda greatly, but I think I didn't pre-select well enough for people that could stand me, that I could stand them. Everybody's got their habits and their ways."

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Cameron and Amis have been together since first meeting on the set of his 1997 blockbuster, *Titanic*. The couple wed in 2000 and now share three children in addition to Suzy's son Jasper Robards, whom she shares with ex Sam Robards, and Cameron's' eldest daughter Josephine, whom he shares with Hamilton.

Watch Cameron discuss his marriages with Bensinger in the clip above.

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