Age-gap relationships aren't uncommon in Hollywood.

But, for Stanley Tucci, the idea of being in one almost stopped him from finding love again after the heartbreaking loss of his first wife.

Watch: Stanley Tucci, 'Searching For Italy' trailer. Post continues after video.

Since 2012, Stanley Tucci has been happily married to Felicity Blunt (and yes, for those unaware, she is the older sister of actress Emily Blunt).

She is also 21 years Stanley's junior; an age gap that almost made him sabotage their relationship in the early days.

In 2023, the actor told BBC's Desert Island Discs that he was "afraid" to date Felicity.

"I kept trying to break it off because I am 21 years older than she is, and I didn’t want to feel old for the rest of my life," Stanley, now 65, said at the time.

"But I knew this was an incredibly special person."

Felicity, 45, is an English literary agent. And it was thanks to Emily Blunt that she and Stanley met in the first place.

In 2006, Felicity joined her younger sister at the premiere of The Devil Wears Prada, in which Emily shared a screen with Stanley.

The Oppenheimer actress bonded with her now-brother-in-law from the start, previously telling PEOPLE that Stanley "knows the way to everyone's hearts."

"He's frighteningly bright, quick to laugh, loves to be laughed at, charismatic, warm and energetic," Emily said.

While Stanley and Felicity crossed paths at the Devil Wears Prada premiere, they wouldn't meet again until 2010; at Emily Blunt's wedding to actor John Krasinski.

At the time, Stanley was still grieving the death of his first wife, Kate Spath-Tucci.

The couple had been happily married for 14 years until Kate passed in 2009 from breast cancer. Together they raised twins, Nicolo and Isabel, now 26, and a daughter, Camilla, now 21.

Speaking to the BBC, the Hunger Games actor admitted he once harboured guilt over Kate's death, and felt "helpless" because he couldn't help her beat her illness.

"Felicity has been so incredible," Stanley once said. Image: Instagram/@stanleytucci

But, eventually, he was able to see a way through those dark feelings to a brighter future.

So, after reuniting with Felicity in 2010, it didn't take long for things to turn romantic for Stanley.

"Felicity has been so incredible, taking on a widower and three children whose mother died," he said.

"That's a huge thing, at a very young age too. If anybody made things better for all of us, it's her. She's the one."

Two years later, Stanley and Felicity had their own wedding — two, in fact! — and they've since welcomed two children, Matteo Oliver, 11, and Emilia Giovanna, eight.

Felicity has also been there for Stanley through his own health battles.

In 2021, the actor revealed that he had been secretly treated oral cancer three years earlier, after doctors found a tumour on his tongue.

High-dose radiation and extensive chemotherapy were used to treat it, and he had to endure a feeding tube for six months.

Stanley Tucci is married to Emily Blunt's older sister, Felicity. Image: Getty

"[Cancer] makes you more afraid and less afraid at the same time. I feel much older than I did before I was sick. But you still want to get ahead and get things done," he previously told Vera magazine.

Stanley later credited his wife's "undying attention, affection and encouragement" for helping him beat the illness.

He also praised both Felicity and Emily for being "insistent" that he undergo the "brutal" treatment, which he feared after watching his first wife suffer through similar procedures.

"They had to drag me, kicking and screaming, but now, I wouldn't be around if I hadn't done that [treatment]," he admitted.

Two years ago, Stanley spoke further about learning to love again after losing his first wife.

"The grief is always there," he told The Guardian. "But if it were to stay as prominent in your life as it does at the beginning, you couldn't function.

"And the person who died would not want you to be that way," he added, before joking: "Although, I do want my wife to be that way when I die. I want her to be incredibly unhappy."

Feature Image: Getty

This article was originally published in 2023 and has since been updated.