News | Apr 11, 2022 10:05 PM EDT

Sean Penn Blames Himself Over Divorce With Leila George: What Happened to Them?

By Alexandria Reeves

Sean Penn reflected on his recent divorce from Leila George and blamed himself for ruining their marriage.

After being in a relationship since 2016, Penn and George finally tied the knot in July 2020. However, they did not last long as George filed for divorce in October 2021.

Months after Penn lost the love of his life for good, he sat for an interview with Hollywood Authentic and opened up about how being neglectful ruined their marriage.

"There's a woman who I'm so in love with, Leila George, who I only see on a day-to-day basis now, because I f---ed up the marriage. We were married technically for one year, but for five years, I was a very neglectful guy," he said.

He recalled how he used to feel totally depressed and despaired not until the 30-year-old Australian actress saved him. However, things fell apart as there were things George did not love.

According to Penn, he does not know what is going to happen with them, and he has no idea what he would face after losing his best friend and the most influential person outside his own blood.

Sean Penn Learned It the Hard Way

After their divorce, the "Flag Day" actor reportedly changed himself to prioritize his loved ones.

"Now, when I wash the dishes, I don't answer my phone. If I'm with my wife for a day, I don't have my phone on, even though I'm juggling a lot of things. I don't juggle them better by taking more calls. I can have my phone off and not watch the news for 12 hours now. And even when I'm stressed, I'm never stressed the way I used to be. Because we've all had our heart broken at some point," he detailed.

Penn admitted that he still needs vodka and an Ambien to make himself fall asleep at night. Still, he does not hide it from the world like he used to.

After all the things that had happened, he aims to put priority on his family.

Aside from working out his relationship with his loved ones, he also tries to reconnect with his friends. For what it's worth, he started hanging out with his friends after George filed for divorce.

Their marriage became the actress' first union while it served as the third for Penn. He previously married Madonna and spent time with her from 1985 to 1989. He went on to marry Robin Wright from 1996 to 2010, sharing two children with her - Dylan and Hopper.