In the 1990s, Kiefer Sutherland and Julia Roberts were one of Hollywood’s biggest power couples – but that all changed when the actress abruptly called off her wedding just two days before it was due to take place. The media speculated wildly about the reason, but 25 years later, Kiefer spoke openly about his relationship with Julia and even praised his former fiancée for calling off the wedding.

“I think she had courage. It wasn’t what she wanted to do in the end. And I think it took a lot of courage, among all the other stuff, to be able to say: I can’t do this,” Kiefer, 49, said during an appearance on The Jess Cagle Interview.

TAP TO VIEW GALLERY Julia Roberts called off her wedding to Kiefer Sutherland in 1991

At the time of their separation, Julia caused controversy by quickly starting a new romance with Kiefer’s good friend, actor Jason Patric.

“We were both young and very much in love. We had decided we wanted to get married, but then this other thing somehow took over,” Kiefer recalled. “She was arguably the most famous woman in the world, and this wedding, which was supposed to be something between the two of us, turned into something so big.”

Julia and Kiefer fell in love on the set of the 1990 film Flatlinerand were supposed to get married on June 14, 1991 in front of 150 guests in the 20th Century Fox recording studio 14 in Los Angeles. But two days before the lavish ceremony, the then 23-year-old Julia canceled and reportedly spent the day of her planned wedding with Jason in Ireland.

The Pretty woman Star in the picture with actor Jason Patric

After his romance with Julia ended, Kiefer married Kelly Winn in 1996; the couple separated in 1999 and he filed for divorce in 2004. He also had a long-term romance with Bo Derek.

Julia was married to Lyle Lovett from June 1993 until their separation in 1995. She then dated Benjamin Bratt from 1998 to 2001 and has been happily married to cameraman Danny Moder, the father of her three children, since July 2002.