Sally Field’s Ex Burt Reynolds Declined to Attend 1980 Oscars with Her: ‘He Wasn’t Nice’

Back in 1980, Sally Field achieved a significant milestone in her career by winning her first Oscar for her remarkable performance in Norma Rae at the 52nd Academy Awards.

However, the now 77-year-old acting icon, who later clinched a second Academy Award, recently disclosed that her success during the awards season led to conflicts with her then-partner, Burt Reynolds.

In the book “50 Oscar Nights” by Dave Karger, set for release on January 23, Field shared that the late Burt Reynolds, who starred in Boogie Nights and passed away in 2018, refused to accompany her to the Oscars event.

He even attempted to dissuade her from attending other prestigious ceremonies linked to her Norma Rae promotional campaign.

Field portrayed Reynolds as envious and resentful of the critical acclaim she garnered for her role in Norma Rae, describing him as ‘not nice' towards her at the time, as reported by People magazine.

The actress also mentioned that prior to the 1980 Oscars, Reynolds, her co-star in Smokey And The Bandit, made it clear that he would not be accompanying her to the ceremony.

Reynolds had already shown signs of unsupportiveness towards Field's highly praised performance months earlier.

When Norma Rae was set to debut at the 1979 Cannes Film Festival, Reynolds advised her against attending, expressing skepticism about her chances of winning any accolades.

Despite Reynolds' discouragement, Field defied his advice and attended the festival.

To his surprise, she won the Best Actress award at Cannes for her role in the film.

Nonetheless, Reynolds remained unenthused and unsupportive, culminating in his decision not to attend the Oscars with Field, leaving her to attend the event in the company of friends David Steinberg and his wife.

Field recounted feeling uncertain about not having a date for the ceremony but expressed gratitude towards David and Judy for making the evening memorable by arranging a limousine ride with champagne, turning it into a joyous celebration.

Field and Reynolds began their relationship while filming Smokey And The Bandit in 1976.

Their affection blossomed further through subsequent collaborations, including The End and Hooper in 1978, and Smokey And The Bandit II in 1980.

However, the strain caused by Reynolds' disapproval of Field's growing success led to their split later in 1980.

Although they continued an on-and-off relationship until 1982, they eventually parted ways permanently.

Reynolds' career took a downturn in the mid-1980s, marked by a series of unsuccessful projects, until his resurgence with an Oscar-nominated role in Boogie Nights in 1997.

Conversely, Field continued to excel in her career, earning a second Oscar in 1985 for Places In The Heart and receiving critical acclaim for her roles in various films over the years.

In her memoir “In Pieces” from 2018, Field mentioned severing ties with Reynolds a few years after their breakup, maintaining no contact with him throughout the last three decades of his life.

According to filmmaker Adam Rifkin in the documentary “I Am Burt Reynolds,” Reynolds expressed regret over their split, acknowledging his mistakes and indicating a desire to have married Field and started a family with her.