The iconic leading ladies of the 80s RomCom mega hits – where are they now?

Sally Albright is a shining light for those of us with Type A tendencies and won over ’80s audiences with her charm and stubbornness. Meg Ryan brought the journalist to life in 1989, opposite Billy Crystal’s Harry Burns.

Since the streamers were swept up from that iconic New Year’s Eve party, Meg returned to romcoms with Sleepless in Seattle and You’ve Got Mail, and more recently reclaimed her place as a romcom lead in 2023’s What Happens Later. She is mother to two, son Jack Quaid and daughter Daisy.

Daryl Hannah is one of the decade’s favourite stars, working on hits like Wall Street, A Walk to Remember and Roxanne. Daryl made a splash alongside Tom Hanks in the 1984 romcom as mermaid Madison.

She is still active in entertainment and has worked as an actress, producer and director and recently executive produced Blue Zeus (2025), appeared in crime movie Buckle Up (2023) and directed husband Neil Young’s solo tour documentary Coastal (2024). 

Farm boy, fetch me that pitcher! Robin Wright starred as Buttercup in the 1987 adaptation of William Goldman’s The Princess Bride. Things go awry when Buttercup and Cary Elwes’ Westley part so that he can seek his fortune and ends up kidnapped by pirates.

Robin is also known for 1997’s Forrest Gump and her more recent acting credits in Wonder Woman, House of Cards and The Girlfriend. She is a mother to two children who she shares with her ex-husband, actor Sean Penn.

Get those shoulder pads out of storage, we’re late to the office. Melanie Griffith’s starring role in 1988 romcom Working Girl cast her opposite Harrison Ford and Sigourney Weaver, making for an impressive line-up of ’80s stars.

Since she’s been off the clock, Melanie has appeared in Hawaii Five-0, 2020’s The High Note and leant her voice to body-swapping drama By Design. She has four children, sharing Alexander with ex Steven Bauer, step-son Jesse and Dakota Johnson with ex Don Johnson and daughter Stella with Antonio Banderas.

She carried a watermelon almost 40 years ago and we’ve been quoting Jennifer Grey ever since. The ’80s favourite danced her way into audiences’ hearts just a year after her other iconic role of the decade in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. 

Since then, she’s appeared on shows like Red Oaks, 2024 hit A Real Pain and most recently featured in bittersweet romance Wish You Were Here. Jennifer has also welcomed her only child Stella in 2001, who is quickly following in her mother’s footsteps.

The Oscar-nominated actress made a name for herself during the ’80s with hit features like jungle adventure Romancing the Stone and Peggy Sue Got Married, following on from late ’70s success in The Doctors. 

Since then, she’s been busy as an actor, recently appearing in Listen to Me as Gertrude Stein, The Estate and upcoming short Joan’s Teeth as the titular Joan. Kathleen’s only daughter Rachel Ann Weiss seems to have inherited her mother’s talent for performing, releasing album Dear Love in 2012.

Demi Moore joined Rob Lowe, Jim Belushi and Elizabeth Perkins in iconic ’80s hit About Last Night… which follows the impact of Danny (Lowe) and Debbie (Moore)’s blossoming relationship following a one night stand.

Demi is well-known for her roles in St Elmo’s Fire, Ghost and Indecent Proposal. More recently, she starred alongside Margaret Qualley in The Substance, worked on contemporary western Landman and starred in adventure comedy I Love Boosters.