Ali MacGraw was already one of Hollywood’s most admired actresses when she met Steve McQueen on the set of The Getaway in 1972. Within a year, she had left her husband, the powerful producer Robert Evans, and married McQueen in 1973. What looked like a fairy-tale romance to the public was privately unraveling almost from the start. Born Elizabeth Alice MacGraw on April 1, 1939, in Pound Ridge, New York, she grew up in a creative but financially strained household.
Her mother was a commercial artist and her father a painter and teacher, though his difficult and unpredictable personality created tension at home. After graduating from Wellesley College, MacGraw entered the fashion world, working for Harper’s Bazaar before becoming a model. Her marriage to Robert Evans in 1969 opened the doors to acting. She earned a Golden Globe for Most Promising Female Newcomer for Goodbye, Columbus in 1969, then became an international star with Love Story in 1970.
Her portrayal of Jenny Cavalleri made her a symbol of emotional authenticity, and she was widely seen as one of America’s most beloved actresses. McQueen’s path to fame was far more turbulent. Born Terence Steven McQueen on March 24, 1930, in Beech Grove, Indiana, he was abandoned by his father at a young age and raised by a mother who struggled with alcoholism. He spent much of his childhood moving between relatives, which left him with deep trust issues and a defensive personality.
At 17, he joined the U. S. Marine Corps, finding structure for the first time in his life. After leaving the military, he studied acting at the Actors Studio in New York and broke through with the TV series Wanted: Dead or Alive in the late 1950s.
Films like The Magnificent Seven, The Great Escape, Bullitt, and The Thomas Crown Affair turned him into one of the biggest stars of the 1960s and 1970s, known for his quiet confidence and rebellious screen presence. When MacGraw was cast in The Getaway, Evans supported the decision, believing the role would show a tougher side of her talent. Both actors were married at the time—McQueen to his wife of nearly two decades, Neile Adams, with whom he had two children. Reports of an affair between MacGraw and McQueen spread quickly, and the media treated her far more harshly than him.
She went from being celebrated for her elegant, innocent image to being criticized for leaving her husband. MacGraw later explained that her feelings for McQueen were overwhelming and that she believed their connection was genuine. She knew she was hurting Evans but felt she had to follow the relationship. The couple married in 1973 and moved to Trancas Beach in Malibu, where McQueen wanted a quiet life away from Hollywood.
At first, MacGraw embraced the change. She stepped away from acting and focused on being a wife. But over time, she felt she was losing her identity. She had given up her career, her independence, and the creative life that had defined her.
The woman once recognized for her own accomplishments became known mainly as Steve McQueen’s wife, and she gradually began to feel invisible. McQueen was not easy to live with. He had struggled with infidelity throughout his first marriage, and the behavior continued after he married MacGraw. Rumors and reports of his affairs reached her, and the betrayals compounded the emotional distance between them.
When she tried to confront him, he often became defensive, avoided the conversation, or withdrew entirely. The 1970s Hollywood culture of parties and substance use only made things worse. McQueen had always lived intensely, but his moods became more unpredictable, and communication between the couple broke down. MacGraw spent years trying to make the marriage work, repeatedly forgiving him because she still believed in their connection.
But the same problems kept returning, and trust deteriorated beyond repair. By the late 1970s, MacGraw realized that staying meant continuing to lose herself. She had already sacrificed her career and much of her independence, and the emotional toll had become unbearable. Their divorce was finalized in 1978.
The breakup drew intense media attention, but the real reasons were deeply personal: years of unresolved betrayal, control issues, and emotional isolation had made the marriage unsustainable. After the divorce, MacGraw began rebuilding her life and rediscovering her own identity. Then, in 1979, McQueen was diagnosed with mesothelioma, a rare and aggressive cancer affecting the lining of the lungs. Doctors suspected past asbestos exposure, possibly during his time in the Marines or on film sets.
McQueen chose to pursue alternative treatments at a clinic in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, despite the lack of medical evidence supporting them. MacGraw was deeply affected by the news of his illness. Their marriage had caused her great pain, but she had also loved him deeply. Hearing that he was dying brought back memories of both the heartbreak and the early days of their powerful connection.
On November 7, 1980, Steve McQueen died in Ciudad Juarez at age 50. MacGraw later acknowledged that McQueen was someone she could never completely forget. He had brought her both incredible happiness and deep heartbreak, and the years they shared left a lasting mark on her life.
