Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick have been married for nearly four decades, but a DNA test revealed that their connection goes back much further than either of them realized.
The Hollywood couple, who tied the knot in 1988, discovered in 2012 that they are actually distant relatives. The surprising revelation came after both stars separately appeared on the PBS genealogy series Finding Your Roots to have their family histories and DNA examined by Harvard University educator Henry Louis Gates Jr.
Bacon and Sedgwick had already been together for years by the time they learned about their shared ancestry. The pair first met in 1987, quickly fell in love and married the following year. They later welcomed two children, Sosie Bacon, 34, and musician Travis Bacon, 37.
Found out they were related
Gates Jr.’s Finding Your Roots frequently uncovers surprising connections between people. Bacon and Sedgwick’s connection, however, was particularly unexpected because the two were already married when they found out.
During Sedgwick’s appearance on the show, Gates Jr. showed her a photograph of Bacon before revealing the result of his research.
“That is your ninth cousin once removed.”
Sedgwick immediately appeared stunned by the news.
“Sh*t,” she replied. “I knew it! I knew it. I knew it. I knew it.”
Celebrated their 38th wedding anniversary
Rather than being disturbed by the discovery, Bacon took a surprisingly positive view of their shared ancestry.
“It’s a beautiful concept that we are connected. That we all, essentially, kind of climbed out of the same swamp. It’s fun to be at the forefront of that idea,” he said.
And clearly, the revelation hasn’t caused any problems for the couple.
Bacon and Sedgwick recently marked their 38th wedding anniversary with a romantic canoeing trip. Sedgwick shared a photo from their anniversary weekend on Instagram, writing: “Perfect anniversary weekend. Canoe believe it’s been 38 years?!”
Fans have also had plenty of fun with the couple’s unexpected family connection, particularly because of the famous “Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon” concept. The idea suggests that virtually anyone in Hollywood can be connected to Bacon through their film roles within six steps.
“One of the best Hollywood couples”
One social media user joked about the discovery: “The less fun version of Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon!,” according to UNILAD.
Another fan wrote: “One of the best Hollywood couples around and someone’s gotta try and bring them down. Not today internet!!”
And another person pointed out the bizarre coincidence of Bacon’s famous game becoming relevant to his own marriage: “They may be ninth cousins once removed but Kevin Bacon essentially playing Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon and finding out his wife is a distant relative was not on my bingo card for 2024.”
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