Sons of Anarchy star Charlie Hunnam slams 'three terrible years' with ex-wife

'The Lost City of Z' star Charlie Hunnam has slammed his first marriage as "three terrible years". Photo / AP

Actor Charlie Hunnam has broken one of the unspoken rules of Hollywood in a new interview: Don't publicly badmouth your ex.

The 37-year-old British born star, best known for his roles in TV series Sons of Anarchy and blockbuster Pacific Rim, opened up about his three-year marriage to actress Katharine Towne in a new interview reported by US Weekly.

The pair met way back in 1999 when they both auditioned for roles in the hit TV show Dawson's Creek. After a brief courtship of only a few weeks, they wed in a Las Vegas ceremony.

The couple stayed married for three years, but by 2002 it was all over.

Almost 15 years later, it seems Hunnam still winces at the memory. He describes how he and Towne decided to wed:

"First time I was ever in Vegas I got married, which didn't turn out that well. I had known the girl for three weeks. We had fallen madly in love and it was the first time I had ever been in love," he explained.

"We thought, 'What if we never see each other again? Let's get married and then we'll have to see each other again even if it's just to get divorced. So we came to Vegas, but I couldn't even get a drink so I actually didn't think I would be able to get married."

As Hunnam explains it, the resulting marriage sounds like it was a three-year disaster.

"Three terrible years," he said.

"Three terrible, painful, expensive years. I got the cats at the end of it, so that was good. There was a small victory."

Ouch. Hunnam's been in a - hopefully happier - relationship with artist Morgana McNelis since 2002, recently telling Men's Health magazine that he counts between-the-sheets time with his girlfriend of 14 years as part of his workout routine.

"I try to do it all. I also try to make love as often as I can. That's an important part of fitness. There's no reason you can't be active at 70," he said.