Dominic West finally felt ready to address those eyebrow-raising photos of him and Lily James — more than three years after the incident.
In a new interview published Sunday, April 21, The Crown actor, 54, recalled the time a scandal nearly took a toll on his marriage to wife Catherine FitzGerald, 52, as he once found himself in headlines for seemingly acting intimate with his The Pursuit of Love costar, 35, during an October 2020 vacation in Rome.
"I hesitate to speak on my wife’s behalf because it was obviously horrible, particularly for her," West admitted to the news outlet, noting while the situation wasn't fun, the couple does "joke about it sometimes."
"Whenever we went out together, the papers would always say we were 'putting on a show of unity'. Even if we’d just been rowing about parking the car or whatever, even if that couldn’t be further from the truth," he explained. "And so when we go out we do sort of say, 'Shall we go and have a show of unity up in London?'"
As OK! previously reported, West sparked concerns for his marriage after paparazzi captured photos of The Affair star riding a scooter with James and having lunch together outside in the Italian city.
At one point, snaps showcased West with his face questionably close to the Rebecca actress' neck.
"It was an absurd situation. It was deeply stressful for my wife and my kids, but there were lighter moments," West acknowledged of FitzGerald and their four kids — Martha, 26, Dora, 18, Senan, 16, and Christabel, 9. "That was the best that came out of it, really."
Following the ordeal, the longtime lovers, who tied the knot in 2010, addressed the public to confirm there was no trouble in paradise.
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"Our marriage is strong and we're very much still together. Thank you. Catherine and Dominic," the spouses declared while standing outside their London home. Alongside their statement, West and FitzGerald posed for photos and packed on the PDA to prove all was good.
Elsewhere in the interview, West said the scandal wound up helping him perfect his role of King Charles in the final two seasons of The Crown on Netflix, as his scenes focused in on the now-king's highly-publicized romance with Camilla Parker Bowles.
"I'd had a very acute understanding of what it's like to feel the horror of your name or your photo in the newspapers," West stated. "There is that dreadful freezing moment when something is revealed about you. I think anyone can understand how that feels."
"But I'd been through it and it must have informed how I approached it. That gut feeling of horror isn't something you get inured to," he concluded.
The Times interviewed West.
