Featured Image Credit: Cindy Ord/Todd Owyoung/NBC/Getty Images
Topics: Celebrity, TV And Film, Travel, US News, Entertainment
Rhianna Benson
Topics: Celebrity, TV And Film, Travel, US News, Entertainment
Richard Gere has had enough of Hollywood - officially.
So much so, that the American actor announced plans today to flee his home country and start a new life all the way over in Spain.
The much-loved actor has resided in the States since his 1949 birth in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
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Despite moving across the country for work throughout the duration of his life, recent years have seen the 75-year-old, his 41-year-old wife Alejandra Silva, and their two sons - five-year-old Alexander, and 4-year-old James - settling down in Connecticut.
According to Mansion Global, the family-of-four lived in a colossal 1938 home in New Canaan, which they've recently sold for a staggering $10.75 million. But why?
Well, apparently, the Gere-Silva family are packing their bags and fleeing for a sunnier life in Spain.
Chatting to Jimmy Fallon this week, the Pretty Woman legend described his plans to relocate as 'world news', before finally lifting the lid on the reasons behind the shock move overseas.
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"My wife is Spanish and—is this a problem for anybody out there?" Gere initially joked, leaving several members of the audience audibly gasping.
"Of course I’ll be back!" he quickly added, however.
Revealing to viewers that his other-half had given an ultimatum about residing in the States, he explained that his time was up.
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"My wife is Spanish and she gave me about seven years here, so we’re going to spend some years in Madrid," he explained.
He added that the couple will also be moving their two sons with them to Europe, as well as Richard's 24-year-old son Homer, whom he shares with ex-wife Carey Lowell, and Alejandra's 11-year-old son Albert, from her previous marriage to Govind Friedland.
Thankfully, however - despite fans' seemingly concerned how the transition to another country could impact their brood - Gere insisted the move was being seen as nothing but a huge positive for the family.
"Our kids are bilingual," he went on. "So, they’re gonna flourish there."
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The Runaway Bride actor went on to discuss the plans that his wife had made for their future home, believing she'll be in her element so close to her loved ones once again.
"My wife, she grew up in a very big Spanish family, like a big Italian family," he laughed.
"Her grandmother was kind of the glue that held that altogether, and the grandmother passed away about a year and a half ago, two years ago.
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"So my wife, I can see her morphing into the new grandmother of this extended family. She’s already planning for, you know, 35 people for Sunday lunches."
During a conversation with Vanity Fair Spain earlier this year, Gere also admitted he believes the opportunity to serve him well, as well as his family, admitting he's always eager to try things out of him comfort zone.
"For me, going to Madrid is going to be a great adventure," he confessed back in April. "Because I have never lived full-time outside the United States.
"And I think it will be very interesting for my children as well.
"For Alejandra, it will be wonderful to be closer to her family, her lifelong friends and her culture.”