Kiefer Sutherland’s tumultuous personal life includes two high-profile divorces and a broken engagement to Julia Roberts.
The 24 actor got married for the first time at age 20 to Camelia Kath in 1987. While they shared his stepdaughter, Michelle Sinclair (née Kath), and one biological daughter, future Veep star Sarah Sutherland, Kiefer and Camelia split in 1990.
Shortly after his first divorce, Kiefer got involved with his Flatliners costar Roberts. They were supposed to tie the knot in June 1991 in a lavish Hollywood ceremony, but Roberts called off their engagement only four days before the wedding.
“[Kiefer] wasn’t waiting at the altar, it wasn’t the day before, somebody else didn’t tell him, he didn’t see it on TV,” Roberts told Rolling Stone in 1994.
Hollywood’s Broken Engagements: Stars That Didn't Make It Down the Aisle
Kiefer had a second short-lived marriage to Elizabeth Kelly Winn from 1996 to 1999. Since 2014, Sutherland has been in his longest public relationship with model and actress Cindy Vela.
Keep scrolling for a look back at Sutherland’s romantic history.
Camelia Kath
Kiefer Sutherland was 20 years old when he married his first wife, Camelia Kath, and became a stepfather to her daughter, Michelle. (Michelle was born during Camelia’s previous marriage to late Chicago singer-songwriter Terry Kath, who died at age 31 in 1978.)
The Lost Boys actor and Camelia welcomed their biological daughter, Sarah, on February 18, 1988.
“I became a dad when I was 20 years old,” Kiefer explained to Closer Magazine in 2016. “It made me deal with certain things at a very young age, and it made me grow up.”
He went on, “You realize very quickly that you’re responsible for things that are outside of yourself, and your responsibility to those things is more important than any other thing. My children didn’t make the choice to be born — I did and their mom did.”
Though Kiefer and Camelia divorced in 1990, he remained close with Michelle. Kiefer attended her 2004 wedding in Scotland and helped promote her 2016 documentary about her biological father, The Terry Kath Experience.
“I fell absolutely in love with Michelle,” Kiefer said at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2016. “I have had the great fortune of having her being a major part of my life from that point forward.”
Julia Roberts
Kiefer Sutherland and Julia Roberts became one of Hollywood’s ‘It Couples’ of the early 1990s after starring together in the sci-fi horror movie Flatliners.
Julia and Kiefer got engaged in August 1990 and were supposed to exchange vows at the 20th Century Fox studio lot on June 14, 1991. However, Roberts reportedly called off their engagement four days before the wedding was due to take place.
Kiefer admitted to The Standard in 2012 that Roberts came to the conclusion that their impending marriage was “a desperate idea,” though he said he “completely respect[ed]” her decision.
“I loved Julia very, very much. Afterwards, there were days when I’d say to myself, ‘You were engaged to the number one actress in the world and now it’s over. You blew it, you blew it all,’” he remembered.
Julia Roberts in January 2026. Amy Sussman/Getty ImagesRoberts told Rolling Stone in 1994 that the sheer amount of misinformation about her broken engagement was “so exhausting.”
“The only thing I really have no tolerance for is ignorance,” she insisted. “People aren’t even consistent. I’ve read ‘days before,’ ‘hours before,’ ‘minutes before.’ And the fact is, it doesn’t matter how many times you say it — he wasn’t waiting at the altar, it wasn’t the day before, somebody else didn’t tell him, he didn’t see it on TV — people don’t want to know.”
Speaking to Entertainment Weekly in 2016, Kiefer suggested that Julia made the best decision for herself and her future. (Julia married country singer Lyle Lovett in 1993, though they split two years later. She has been with her second husband, cinematographer Danny Moder, since 2002.)
“I think she was being realistic for herself and I think that’s much better. I think it’s hard to explain the pressure,” Kiefer said. “We were young and we were both very much in love and we had decided that we wanted to get married. She was arguably the most famous woman in the world and this wedding that was supposed to be something between the two of us became something so big.”
Kiefer continued, “It wasn’t what she wanted to do in the end and I think it took a lot of courage, in amongst all that other stuff, to be able to say, ‘I can’t do this’. And I’m gonna leave it at that.”
Elizabeth Kelly Winn
Kiefer Sutherland married his second wife, Elizabeth Kelly Winn, in a private ceremony in 1996. Elizabeth largely stayed out of the spotlight throughout her marriage to Kiefer.
The couple separated in 1999. The New York Post reported in May 2004 that Kiefer filed for divorce in Los Angeles Superior Court, citing “irreconcilable differences” as the cause of the split.
There were rumors five years later that Kiefer and Kelly were getting back together, though his spokesperson quickly shot down any talk of reconciling.
“There is absolutely no truth to recent reports about Kiefer Sutherland reuniting with his ex-wife Kelly Winn,” his rep told People in November 2009. “Mr. Sutherland and Ms. Winn have remained good friends since they separated in 1999.”
Bo Derek
Months after his 1999 separation from Elizabeth Kelly Winn, Kiefer Sutherland was briefly linked to actress Bo Derek. They were reportedly only together for a few months before splitting in 2000.
Neither has ever spoken publicly about their romance.
Cindy Vela
Kiefer Sutherland has been in a relationship with model and actress Cindy Vela since 2014. Vela costarred with Mickey Rourke in the 2012 action movie Black November and worked with Thomas Jane and the late Treat Williams on the 2020 thriller Run Hide Fight.
Cindy has accompanied Kiefer to many red carpet events over the years. Away from the spotlight, they own property together in Kingston, New York, and Toluca Lake, California.
Kiefer Sutherland and Cindy Vela in January 2024. Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for Critics Choice AssociationHello! Magazine reported in 2017 that Cindy and Kiefer were engaged after three years together. However, Kiefer told The Telegraph in 2020 that Cindy was “cool-ish” with his preference to stay engaged rather than ever tie the knot.
When he’s not saving the world in action blockbusters, Kiefer spends a lot of his time playing music with his Kiefer Sutherland Band. In his Telegraph interview, Kiefer revealed that he dedicated an original song called “Two Stepping in Time” to Cindy.
“It’s the only song I’ve ever written for Cindy and actually it made her cry,” he shared with a smile.
Cindy occasionally shares highlights from her world travels with Kiefer via her Instagram account.
Hence then, the article about kiefer sutherland s relationship history julia roberts engagement more was published today ( ) and is available on Us magazine ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( Kiefer Sutherland’s Relationship History: Julia Roberts Engagement, More )
Also on site :
- Germany’s Merz changes stance on Russia
- Tokyo's Yamanote Line suspended due to power outage
- Germany’s Merz acknowledges ‘strategic mistake’