Dennis Quaid Defends Laura Savoie Age Gap, ‘It Really Doesn’t Bother Us’

Dennis Quaid is speaking out about the criticism he has faced regarding his engagement to Laura Savoie, who is 39 years younger than him.

65-year-old Quaid proposed to Savoie, a 26-year-old PhD student last month and despite the outcry, the two of them really don’t mind.

“Everyone comes from the perspective of their own life and so I can’t comment on the way they feel; I can’t even get angry,” “The Parent Trap” star told The Guardian.

While speaking with the publication about his new Netflix project, “Merry Happy Whatever,” Quaid revealed that he is very aware of the comparison between his real life and the movie “The Parent Trap,” in which a 44-year-old Quaid’ s character becomes engaged to a 26-year-old woman, much to the disapproval of his twin daughters.

In real life, Quaid has twin daughters and happened to be visiting the vineyard where the film was shot when comparisons were being made. Even the actress who played his onscreen fiancée, Elaine Hendrix, chimed in with jokes.

“That was really a laugh,” Quaid said in response to the jokes. He did, however, speak candidly and earnestly about how he feels about Savoie.

“I didn’t go out looking for an age gap or someone really younger than me,” Quaid said genuinely in regards to the critics. “You have no control over who you fall in love with. I don’t fall in love easy.”

In an Entertainment Tonight interview, Quaid discussed that the couple will likely be married within the year, jokingly saying that’s what he thought they were supposed to do, saying if you wait longer than a year, “it’s suspect.”

"I think she's looking at wedding dresses today," Quaid said in the interview, regarding how soon things are happening. He also hinted in the two interviews that his wedding location could be in Hawaii, or it could be that “Parent Trap” vineyard he and his fiancée visited.