Cindy Breakspeare, the Jamaican beauty queen who shared a six-year relationship with Bob Marley in the final stretch of his life, has broken her silence on the global box-office hit Bob Marley: One Love. In a candid interview with Anthony Miller of Entertainment Report (ER), Breakspeare said the film left her feeling erased.
“Did the movie do a disservice to you?” Miller asked.
“Yes, I think if I am to be honest, I would say so,” Breakspeare replied. “I was in a relationship with Bob for six years, at the end of his life. And, you know, I wasn’t the only one, I think, who felt hard done by.” Several scenes were shot with Kingsley Ben-Adir as Bob Marley and Umi Myers as Breakspeare in both Kingston and the U.K. but they never made the final cut.
A “Nameless, Voiceless Ghost”
Breakspeare, who won Miss World in 1976 and later had a son with Marley, Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley, said her portrayal in the film was fleeting and distorted.
“I think I ended up being a nameless, voiceless ghost,” she said. “I was seen maybe a grand total of three times—standing in a doorway, sitting on a sofa in the back of the studio, and in a photograph which was actually fictitious because I was wearing a swimsuit with a sash over it saying Miss World or something and Bob was standing beside me. No such picture was ever taken. So that was manufactured for the purpose.”
She added, “Perhaps they felt that of all the women who had children with Bob, outside children, I actually should probably be grateful that I actually got a look in any at all. But the representation was nothing compared to the actual relationship that we shared.”
Paramount’s Bob Marley: One Love crossed $100 million globally in just 10 days, grossing $101.1 million worldwide ($61.4 million in North America and $39.7 million across 59 international markets). The $70 million biopic opened on Valentine’s Day 2024 with a strong $52 million six-day debut and $28.6 million weekend, retaining the top spot domestically in its second weekend. Despite mixed reviews (42% on Rotten Tomatoes), audiences gave it an “A” CinemaScore but Breakspeare only recalls it not being a critically acclaimed movie.
A Hero, But Still a Man
The film, produced with the blessing of Marley’s estate, sought to immortalize the reggae icon’s legacy. Breakspeare does not dispute Marley’s status, but insists his humanity was stripped away.
“So I don’t have any problem with making him a hero,” she said, “but you must always remember that he was a man. He was just a man, a human being like the rest of us. And we all have our idiosyncrasies, faults, failings, shortcomings, whatever you want to call them, you know.”
“What was missing?” she continued. “I’m not sure that Bob’s single-mindedness of purpose and his edginess, that sharp edge that his character had, was really captured. I think that all you really had to do was tell the truth. That’s all you really had to do and you woulda had a great movie.”
A Life in His Orbit
Breakspeare recalled how Marley’s charisma transformed not only her life, but an entire generation’s sense of rebellion.
“We were besotted. All of us. We were absolutely besotted. And maybe that was accentuated by the taboos surrounding it. Here we were, these naughty little uptown girls, myself and my friends, fraternizing with all these Rastafarians and hanging out on the front lawn at 56 Hope Road while football was being played, etc., etc., etc. His character was so larger than life. There was no escape, Anthony. There just was no escape.”
The relationship was not without controversy. “Look man, that was nearly 50 years ago you know. It’s ancient history now in my world. I don’t want anybody trying to change history—it was what it was. And I not only went through a lot of flak last year, I went through a lot of flak at the time because I wasn’t supposed to be involved with no rasta man. You’re crossing that invisible line in the sand. Nobody was comfortable with it.
“I mean, I had a friend whose parents sat her down and told her categorically, ‘You see what Cindy Briggs’ parents done? Don’t even think about it.’ The rest of the world, I don’t think they were horrified. If here was a rock star and a beauty queen, what? What else is new? His magnetism.”
Family, Principles, and Flak
The erasure, Breakspeare suggested, was compounded by the way her role in Marley’s family story has often been scapegoated.
“The fact that Bob had 11 children with seven different women. So there’s me and there’s Rita. Tell me who the others are. Tell me who the others are. Do they have a public profile? So it’s easy to zero in on me. Me put up with the flack you nuh.”
She framed her resilience around principle: “It was tough. But one of my favorite mantras to live by in life is that your principles only mean something, Anthony, if you stand by them when it’s not convenient. And I could not have anybody trample all over me and just go on as if it was okay.”
What Was Lost in Translation
Now Breakspeare says the film’s version of Marley flattened both his complexity and the wider story of those around him.
“As a young, young woman, I never had very long-term goals. Like, I wasn’t going to put in eight years of university to become a doctor, for example. I was a young woman who was always looking for an opportunity. And whatever door opened, I would walk through it.
“So a lot of the story was missing. A lot of it was missing. And I’ve heard other people who’ve been asked to comment and say it clearly. So what do you think was missing? One person said, Bob! Bob! They have a thing called creative license. And in stories like this, when people decide what they want the whole to become, very often a lot of things fall by the wayside.”
Last year Breakspeare shared on Marley’s 79th birthday last year, ahead of the film’s release. That post, filled with nostalgia and affection, ignited a social media firestorm.
“Bob, on what would have been your 79th Birthday, I celebrate the incredible impact you’ve had globally, cherish our amazing son Damian, and reminisce about the beautiful times we shared—from 56 Hope Road to your mother’s home in Delaware and Miami, New York, Oakley Street in London, The Bahamas, Trinidad, and beyond. The memories are countless, but our love for you is endless. Happy Birthday to the people’s hero, loved and revered by all. ❤️💛💚,” she wrote.
Reflecting on Marley’s enduring influence, Breakspeare said that despite the flak she endured in the past—and the disappointment she feels now—she would not change her path.
“When I look at the artist that my son has become today, I wouldn’t change anything.”
