‘Superman’ Star Margot Kidder Ended up Homeless & Broke – Her Only Child Looked For Her, Hoping She Was Alive
Despite a snowballing career in film that saw Margot Kidder land leading roles in various films, her fall from glory happened so fast, leaving her at the bottom of the barrel. First, she went through a series of divorces, then had an accident that bankrupted her and left her partially paralyzed. It got so bad that, at one point, she was homeless for days.
Margot Kidder was a Hollywood sensation in the early 80s, taking the world by storm with her role as the female lead in “Superman.” But where did her story begin?
Kidder was born to mining Engineer Kendall Kidder and his wife Jill, a homemaker. She was the secondborn in a family of five children, but even soon after birth, it was evident she was smart as a whip.
Margot Kidder appearing in the ABC tv movie “The Wide World of Mystery” | Source: Getty Images
She portrayed star-like qualities since she was a little girl, with her Vancouver Magee Secondary School teacher Ruth Rapanos saying Margot “was like a little star.”
However, she also suffered from manic depression. She would experience bouts of mood swings, and as a teen, she even tried taking her own life. However, by the next day, she would return to her usual self.
Actress Margot Kidder poses for a portrait in 1985 in Los Angeles, California | Source: Getty Images
In her adulthood, the actress got married thrice. Her first marriage was to novelist Thomas McGuane in 1976, resulting in a daughter, Maggie, that same year. She stopped taking on roles and became a housewife, keen on looking after her daughter. However, she always longed to return to acting.
The union was short-lived, and she and McGuane divorced in 1977. Two years later, Kidder married actor John Heard, a marriage that lasted a record six days.
Actress Margot Kidder and daughter Maggie McGuane on February 4, 1988 at Mont Sainte-Anne Ski Resort in Beaupre, Quebec, Canada | Source: Getty Images
A few years later, she tried her luck at marriage again and walked down the aisle with French director Philippe de Broca in 1983. That, too, lasted a year, and the pair divorced in 1984.
Before she wed for the second time, she made a comeback in film and auditioned for the 1978 superhero cult classic, “Superman,” landing the role of the lead female Lois Lane, the girlfriend of the lead male Christopher Reeve.
