Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell attend the 97th Annual Oscars (Getty Images)

After 42 years together, Goldie Hawn has opened up about why she and Kurt Russell never tied the knot. During an interview on The Dan Buettner Podcast, the Oscar-winning actress shared the key to the couple’s successful relationship, which began in 1983

“I have a relationship with birds,” she said. “I’m a bird. And you leave the cage door open, I may never fly out. But if you close that door, for my freedom and my independence, I would probably take all my feathers off.”

Goldie was previously married to Bill Hudson from 1976 to 1982, during which they welcomed two children, daughter Kate and son Oliver Hudson. The siblings had a complicated relationship with Bill, who Goldie previously described as an “absentee father.” Kate and Oliver were primarily raised by Goldie and her partner of over 42 years, Kurt, whom they refer to as their “Pa.” The couple share one son, Wyatt Russell.

Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell are not married (FilmMagic)

“It’s a freedom of basically not melding into somebody else, when you’re copacetic on certain areas and you have freedom,” Goldie added of her relationship with Kurt.

The 80-year-old went on to address whether the pair would ever get married. “Even if we did get married, it wouldn’t make any difference because it’s 42 years now,” she shared. In response to why she continues to choose Kurt, Goldie said: “Because I have respect for him because I think he’s an amazing person.”

Goldie and Kurt have been together for over 42 years (WireImage)

She added that she’s “also very sexually attracted to him. And that’s important. If you have a long-term sexual relationship, that’s actually really healthy. He’s my sexual object.”

The couple back in 1989 (Getty Images)

This isn’t the first time the couple have opened up about marriage. During an interview with Variety back in 2023, Kurt acknowledged the topic. “We constantly got asked, ‘When are you going to get married? Why aren’t you married?’ And we were like, ‘Why does anybody care about that?’ We’d asked our kids if they cared about it. They didn’t. We didn’t.”

Family mediator and parenting specialist, Paige Harley, spoke to us about the emotional landscape of blended families. “In my experience, blended families function best when step-parents focus on building connection rather than stepping into an authority role right away or at all,” she said. “Kids really don’t need a second ‘parent’, what they respond to most is a calm, steady adult who helps them feel safe. When there’s tension between homes, that neutral presence can make a huge difference.”