Sandra Bullock and longtime partner Bryan Randall were every bit a husband-wife team despite not being legally married. In fact, they were so committed that they reportedly "exchanged vows" in 2017.
On Aug. 8, DailyMail.com published a video of the couple dancing on the beach in the Bahamas allegedly following an intimate ceremony during which they exchanged vows.
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"They really did this for the children, to kind of seal the deal and show them this was a forever thing. After the ceremony [Sandra's kids] Louis and Laila started calling Bryan dad," a source shared.
The Academy Award-winning actress and began dating the model-turned-photographer in 2015 after they met when he photographed her son's birthday party. Although Sandra has spoken publicly about never wanting to marry again, she called Bryan "the love of my life" on a 2021 episode of "Red Table Talk."
"We share two beautiful children — three children, [including Bryan's] older daughter. It's the best thing ever," she said. At the time, she didn't reference his health issues.
Bryan passed away on Aug. 5 following a secret three-year battle with ALS, a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. He was 57.
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While Sandra's sister said the actress was there until the end, an insider told DailyMail.com that Bryan's illness did strain their relationship. But they were "more together than ever" at the time of his death, the insider added. Sandra also arranged and paid for his around-the-clock care.
Interestingly, split rumors had surrounded the couple for the better part of a year, largely due to the fact they hadn't been seen together in public for a while. That speculation actually helped them keep his health battle private.
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"Sandra kept Bryan hidden away in the back of the house. It's so big that you could conceal what was going on with him but towards the end she really didn't let people into the home beyond the doctors and nurses who were looking after him," the insider said. "It was quite convenient for them to have these rumors that they'd broken up because it helped conceal what was really going on. It was easier to let people assume they hadn't seen him because they were no longer together."
A separate source noted, "The relationship was absolutely strained by it, and it was really hard for the children. He had been living in one of her Malibu properties for a while just because it was nicer for him to be there, by the ocean, and I think some people assumed they had split because it looked like they were living separately, but there weren't. She'd have the house stocked up with everything he needed, and his nurses would go there."
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According to a statement from Bryan's family released after his death, "Bryan chose early to keep his journey with ALS private and those of us who cared for him did our best to honor his request." The statement continued, "We are immensely grateful to the tireless doctors who navigated the landscape of this illness with us and to the astounding nurses who became our roommates, often sacrificing their own families to be with ours. At this time we ask for privacy to grieve and to come to terms with the impossibility of saying goodbye to Bryan." The statement was signed by, "His Loving Family."
