'Moonstruck' Cast Then and Now: Catch Up With the Stars of The 1987 Rom-Com

Cher leads the 1987 romantic comedy Moonstruck alongside a cast of Nicolas Cage, Danny Aiello, Olympia Dukakis and more, telling the story of a woman enmeshed in a complicated love triangle with two brothers. The film took home three Academy Awards out of six nominations: Cher won for Best Actress, Olympia Dukakis won for Best Supporting Actress and it also garnered one for Best Original Screenplay.

What is Moonstruck about?

Loretta Castorini (Cher) is a 37-year-old widow living in Brooklyn Heights with her Italian family. Her boyfriend-turned-fiancee, Johnny Cammareri (Aiello), is set to return to Sicily to be with his dying mother, and instructs Loretta to invite his estranged brother Ronny (Cage) to the wedding.

Visiting Ronny at his bakery, she learns that he lost his hand in a bread slicer, resulting in his fiancee leaving him. The two begin to talk, and before they know it, are engaged in a passionate love affair, differing greatly from her relationship with Johnny, whom she doesn't truly love. As their relationship progresses in the absence of Johnny, we also come to learn that Loretta isn't the only one who finds herself involved in an affair.

Moonstruck cast then and now

Here, take a look at the Moonstruck cast today.

Cher as Loretta Castorini in the Moonstruck cast

Before her role in the film, Cher was already known for her success in the music industry, both as a solo artist and as a member of the duo Sonny & Cher. After films like Moonstruck (1987), The Witches of Eastwick (1987) and Silkwood (1983), she cemented her status as a star in the film industry. Her more recent film work includes 2010's Burlesque, as well as Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again (2018). In 2018, The Cher Show, a musical inspired by her life and career, premiered in Chicago and later opened on Broadway. On October 20, 2023, she released her first Christmas album, titled Christmas.

RELATED: Young Cher: See the Singer’s Fashion Transformation and Her Wildest Looks

Nicolas Cage as Ronny Cammareri in the Moonstruck cast

Cage's relationship with Moonstruck is a unique one. "I made that movie on a deal with my then-agent Ed Limato," He told USA Today. "I was desperately trying to get him to say yes to me doing (1989 horror comedy) Vampire's Kiss. He said: 'No, you're not going to wear those stupid plastic things. I want you to look handsome! Do Moonstruck!' And I said, 'I don't want to do Moonstruck!' I wanted to be punk rock — I didn't want to do a schmaltzy movie about opera. But I said, 'If I do Moonstruck, will you let me do Vampire's Kiss?' And he said OK."

He continued, "The truth is, I love Moonstruck. Now that I'm older, I see the value in (it). I haven't seen Moonstruck in a million years, but I think it's powerfully romantic and I love all the performances."

After the film, Cage's success soared. Some of his most notable roles include Leaving Las Vegas (1995), The Rock (1996), Face/Off (1997), the National Treasure series and more. Some of his most recent roles include The Retirement Plan (2023), Dream Scenario (2023), The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent (2022) and Pig (2021).

Olympia Dukakis as Rose Castorini in the Moonstruck cast

Olympia Dukakis was a successful actor on both the stage and screen who won an Academy Award for Best Supporting actress for her role as Loretta's mother Rose in Moonstruck.

After the film, she had roles in films including Working Girl (1988), Steel Magnolias (1989), In the Land of Women (2007) and Cloudburst (2011). In 2003, her autobiography, Ask Me Again Tomorrow: A Life in Progress, was published, and in 2018, a documentary about her life, titled Olympia, was released. Sadly, she passed away on May 1, 2021.

Vincent Gardenia as Cosmo Castorini

Vincent Gardenia had an accomplished career outside of Moonstruck, nominated twice for Best Supporting Actor at the Academy Awards for Bang the Drum Slowly (1973) and for Moonstruck (1987).

Additionally, he won an Emmy for Best Supporting Actor in a television movie or television series for HBO's Age Old Friends, and in 1972, he won a Tony for Best Supporting Actor in The Prisoner of Second Avenue. After Moonstruck, credits include The Tragedy of Flight 103: The Inside Story (1990), L.A. Law and The Super (1991), to name a few. He passed away on December 9, 1992 of a heart attack.

Danny Aiello as Johnny Cammareri

Danny Aiello took on the role of Johnny in Moonstruck and continued to experience great success after his role as Cher's husband-to-be. In 1989, he starred in Spike Lee's Do the Right Thing, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.

Some of his other notable roles were in Jacob's Ladder (1990), Léon: The Professional (1994) and City Hall (1996). His more recent roles prior to his passing in 2019 were in Making a Deal With the Devil (2019), The Last Big Save (2019), Little Italy (2018) and The Neighborhood (2017).

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