Steve Carell On The Secret To Marriage

For many audiences, actor and writer Steve Carell has a direct line to their funny bone after starring in some of the best cringe comedies over the years. Whether it’s leading the Dunder Mifflin team in NBC’s “The Office,” the unstable weatherman Brick Tamland in the “Anchorman” movies, or as the animated supervillain Gru in the “Despicable Me” franchise.

In recent years, Carell has gone back to his small screen roots and has appeared in some of the best shows streaming on Apple TV, like “The Morning Show” and “Rooster.” His work in Hulu’s “The Patient” was met with rave reviews, as he played a psychotherapist opposite Domhnall Gleeson’s serial killer. With such a varied career, Carell has learned a thing or two about life and love, which is why he’s today’s quote of the day.

“People say what’s the secret to a marriage? There’s no secret — I think you get lucky.”

Steve Carell revealed his thoughts on marriage in a 2013 interview with The Guardian promoting “Despicable Me 2.” The animated sequel ends with Carell’s zany supervillain getting married to secret agent Lucy Wilde (Kristen Wiig) who becomes the adoptive mother to his three daughters. So, it’s fitting that he opened up about his own marriage to actor and comedian Nancy Carell.

In the same interview, he also recalled how being married has helped their working relationship, because they’ve collaborated on NBC’s “The Office,” TBS’ “Angie Tribeca,” and Apple TV’s “Rooster.” He explained: “As much as I don’t really feel I share a sense of humour with my family, I definitely share one with her — we find the same things funny.”

A marriage is an incredible thing to have in life, but it’s not always easy or perfect, which is why the topic of a “secret to marriage” often comes up in conversation. Steve Carell’s comments take a very realistic approach rather than an idealized take on romance. There is no one-size-fits-all answer to a great marriage; it takes work and effort from both people involved. However, being with the right person is all about being lucky in meeting them at the right time so that it leads to getting married. 

Of course, some people might see luck as predetermined destiny or that we’re meant to be with a specific person in life. Carell certainly feels like he was meant to be with Nancy Carell. In the same interview with The Guardian, he recalled what it was like seeing her standing at the altar.

“There was an ethereal sense of how right it all was and more than anything it was very empowering knowing that person was going to be my partner and have my back,” he explained. He revealed something important to every marriage: Have each other’s back. By supporting and helping each other, you’ll be able to tackle any problem as a team.

• “As a parent, all you want is for your kids to be safe but you don’t want to be over-protective and so you know that at some stage, they’re going to make their own mistakes and get hurt emotionally when all you want to do is protect them from that.” — from a 2007 interview with IndieLondon
• “If we were meant to read for enjoyment, would God have created television? Read as it was intended — for exercise. The more you read, the more you expand your — what’s the word I’m looking for? — your stockpile of words. You must have a stockpile of words that you can pass along to your children for their stockpile.” — from a 2008 interview with Wired
• “You project a version of yourself to the public to protect and insulate yourself a little bit. Actors come up with a version of themselves in order to protect the real person.” — from a 2012 interview with The Hollywood Reporter
• “I’ve waited my entire life to be busy. Whenever I hear actors complain about being busy, I think ‘shut up.’ Because you do, you wait to be successful or to be able to work. And yea, I’m extremely lucky.” — from a 2013 interview with CNN