Rebecca Gayhearthas made it no secret that she’s struggled in the years since sheaccidentally struck and killeda 9-year-old boy with a car in Los Angeles.
The actress has seen love and loss in the 18 years since, though Jorge Cruz Jr., who was crossing the street on his way home from school when she hit him, has never been far from her mind. And despite fearing her career was over, she is slated to appear in Quentin Tarantino’shighly-anticipatedOnce Upon a Time … in Hollywoodas Billie Booth.
RELATED VIDEO: Rebecca Gayheart Files for Divorce from Eric Dane After 14 Years of Marriage
In the years immediately following the accident, Gayheart took several small parts, like the Sarah Michelle Gellar filmHarvard Man, an episode of the comedyWhat I Like About You, and several episodes of the Bryan Fuller dramedyDead Like Me.
In 2005, she made her Broadway debut inSteel Magnolias,telling PEOPLE at the timethat the role felt “like a fresh start,” as she doubted she’d ever work again as an actress after the accident.
“[It was a] terrible, terrible time. I couldn’t really function for a while,” she said in the same interview, adding that she had difficulty sleeping and eating.
“I just got to a point where I realized I needed help. I got into therapy. I’ve been in therapy since then. It’s really helpful… I don’t think anyone could sit and say they got over something like this. I just don’t think that’s possible. It hasn’t been for me.”
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Gayheart landed roles in shows likeNip/Tuck,CSI: MiamiandUgly Betty, and in 2004, she married actorEric Danein a Las Vegas chapel — with the airport cabbie serving as best man.
“I feel lucky I found him,” she told PEOPLE. “He definitely appeared in my life at the right time.”
The couple’s union was not without drama; in 2009, a nude video featuring Dane, Gayheart and former Miss U.S. Teen Kari Ann Peniche in compromising positions leaked on the internet.
The LAPD confirmed at the time that detectives were investigating the video, though Dane’s lawyer Marty Singer shot down claims it was a “sex tape.”
Rebecca Gayheart/Instagram
The couplefiled a $1 million copyright infringement lawsuitagainst Gawker Media in September 2009 for posting the 12-minute video, which wassettled a year laterafter the site agreed to take it down.
Gayheart and theGrey’s Anatomyactorwelcomed their first child, a daughter named Billie Beatrice, in March 2010, and their second,daughter Georgia Geraldine, in 2011.
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Shortly after Gayheart announced her second pregnancy, Dane, now 46, completed a stint in rehab for anaddiction to painkillersfollowing a sports injury.
Looking back on the couple’s turmoil in 2014,Dane told PEOPLE, “We’ve all made mistakes. My one regret is that I got the person I love most wrapped up in all that: Rebecca.”
That same year, Gayheart was hit with more tragedy as she mourned the loss of her 38-year-old sister, Rachel.
The actressfiled for divorcefrom Dane in February 2018 after 14 years of marriage, citing irreconcilable differences.
“After 14 years together we have decided that ending our marriage is the best decision for our family,” Dane said in a statement to PEOPLE.
“We will continue our friendship and work as a team to co-parent our two beautiful girls as they are the most important thing in the world to us. We kindly ask that you respect our privacy during this time as we navigate the next phase of our lives.”
source: people.com
