Susan Sarandon explains why she never dropped her last name after splitting from Chris Sarandon

Susan and Chris were married from 1967 to 1979; the former couple do not share any children together

Susan Sarandon discusses why she never changed her last name, even though her marriage to ex-husband Chris Sarandon ended more than 40 years ago.

“He was a very kind man and he kept me alive, you know, so I’m glad I have that name,” said 78-year-old Susan The times about keeping the Sarandon last name while speaking to the outlet about her new film The gutter in an article published on Sunday, November 10.

The Academy Award-winning actress was married to actor Chris, now 82, from 1967 to 1979. Although Susan never married again, she has three children, including Eva Amurri, 39, whom she shares with Italian director Franco Amurri, and with John . “Jack” Henry, 35, and Miles Robbins, 32, whom she shares with ex Tim Robbins.

Although Susan had no problem keeping the last name Sarandon, the actress did tell the outlet that she regrets never changing her first name. “Sigourney Weaver, Tuesday Weld and Stockard Channing all started Susans and they had the idea to change that name and I’m stuck with Susan,” she said. “It’s kind of fun to do a rebaptism as you start to realize who you are.”

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Susan, whose maiden name is Tomalin, and Chris remain friends for decades after their romantic relationship ended. She even appeared on an episode of his podcast in September 2023 Cooking from your heartwhere the former couple reminisced about their wedding and Sarandon revealed that her brother Phillip Tomalin Jr. “had contact with one of the bridesmaids” during their 1967 wedding.

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“When I met Chris, I thought, and rightly so, that he knew everything because he took me to black and white movies and introduced me to literature and basically saved my life with his kindness,” Susan said during that podcast episode. The former couple met as students at the Catholic University of America in Washington, DC, in the mid-1960s

“And so I actually credit you with my foundation and my survival. One of the reasons I’m here is just to say that publicly,” Susan also told Chris at the time.

Related: Susan Sarandon Says She ‘Learned So Much About Love’ at Daughter Eva Amurri’s Wedding: ‘I Love You Two’

While Chris and Susan don’t share any children, the Princess Bride star also has three children from other relationships, including two daughters and a son with ex-wife Lisa Ann Cooper; he also has a stepson through his wife Joanna Gleason, to whom he has been married since 1994.

Susan’s new movie The gutter is in theaters and available now on demand.