Pierce Brosnan's Sons Didn't Know of Their Dad's Fame — He Was a Single Father to 3 Kids for 10 Years

• Pierce Brosnan is a father of five children, two of whom are adopted. He shielded his youngest from the spotlight so much that they did not know he was a Hollywood star.

• His childhood was full of loneliness and the misery of growing up without a father who abandoned him as an infant. His mother moved to London when Brosnan was four, leaving him to navigate a "cruel" and "ugly" childhood alone.

• He raised his three older children single-handedly for ten years.

• He finally found his true love, who supported him for 21 years.

"The Greatest" actor Pierce Brosnan is possibly the most charming man alive. In addition to his thriving movie career, he is also a doting dad to his five children.

As a famous worldwide sensation, best known for his role as 007, it is ironic that his son's friends only learned that he was a Hollywood star a few years back.

Dylan, one of the actor's sons, invited his friends over to his father's Malibu home for his 21st birthday, and that is when they learned who his father was.

But his friends were not the only ones that had remained in the dark for so long. Despite Dylan's early childhood coinciding with the peak of Brosnan's box office mojo, he never knew his father was a celebrity until years later. He told GQ:

“I always thought he had a lot of friends growing up because people would come up to him in the street, and he’s like the nicest guy, so he talks to everyone for a really long time.”

Growing up, Dylan and his younger brother, Paris — the two youngest of the Brosnan brood — had quite the normal childhoods. Their parents shielded them from the spotlight and raised them between their homes in Hawaii and Malibu.

Dylan says he would run around the forest, ride bicycles down the street, explore caves, swim, and surf like all the kids he grew up around.

On top of providing his youngest sons a life away from the limelight, Brosnan was a doting father to them, and they learned a lot with him as an example. They say they have learned valuable lessons about showing up on time, confidence, passion, and preparation.

Another valuable lesson the two have learned from their doting father is humor. Dylan says "The November Man" actor taught them never to be afraid of making fun of themselves. Despite his laid-back and fun nature, Brosnan grew up with no one supporting him.

Pierce Brosnan’s Dad Abandoned Him as an Infant

Brosnan's life story is a classic case of rising from grass to grace. Born in Navan, Ireland, Brosnan was the only child of carpenter Thomas Brosnan and Mary May Smith.

His life changed for the worse when he was only an infant after his father abandoned him and his mother. Four years later, the little boy suffered another rejection when his mother left for London to train and work as a nurse. After that, she only came home maybe once or twice a year.

Left in the care of his grandparents, he says they lived on the outskirts of town, across River Boyne, in the Meath County of Ireland. He recalls being an outsider, a loner, and living in a cruel and ugly world.

But things only got worse when his grandparents passed away. His relatives could no longer house him, and he moved to live in lodges with Mill workers. Growing up in such crippling circumstances only worked in favor of Brosnan because he knew he would treat his family better once he had one.

After his father left, he only ever met him once in 1984, when filming an episode of "Remington Steele" in Ireland. They spent a Sunday afternoon together, but after a story or two, and a few pints of beer, he vowed to be a better father to his children.

That and the fact that he spent his entire childhood largely separated from his family molded him into a man that wants nothing but the best for his children. Today, he is keen on keeping his family close. He takes fatherhood as a serious responsibility, and his kids are everything to him. He told The Gentleman Journal:

"I cherish family very much. I cherish being a father. I did not grow up with a father figure or with a solid family."

Brosnan Vowed to Be a Better Father

Despite his resolve to be a better father to his children, the fatherhood journey has not always been as smooth as he imagined. The actor first experienced fatherhood after welcoming his first child, son Sean Brosnan in 1983 with his wife, Cassandra Harris.

He then adopted Cassandra's two older children, Christopher Brosnan and Charlotte Brosnan, after their biological father, Dermot Harris, died in 1986. Finally, Brosnan was content with what life was offering, and he could not wait to exercise his lifelong dream of caring for and loving his family as he had vowed for a long time.

His happiness was, unfortunately, short-lived. In 1987, Cassandra tragically died after a sudden illness and an ovarian cancer diagnosis. Brosnan was left to cater to his three children as a single father.

He would routinely call Charlotte, then an acting student in London, and keep a watchful eye on the boys because he knew they would not get over their grief quickly. Christopher was obviously in pain, and even though his youngest child, Sean, declared he was happy talking only to his father, the actor brought in a counselor to help.

The actor also found a way to juggle his career and fatherhood by sometimes having his sons accompany him to the location of his films or only taking roles that would allow him to come back to them every day. As they mourned Cassandra, the family only grew closer. He said at the time:

"You hug more deeply. You love more deeply."

After raising his children single-handedly for years, the "James Bond" star met American Journalist Keely Shaye Smith in 1994 in Mexico. They dated for several years before tying the knot in 2001 at Ballintubber Abbey in Ireland.

Brosnan had finally found happiness and was thrilled when they welcomed their two youngest sons, Dylan and Paris, born in 1997 and 2001, respectively.

His wife has supported him through the years as they continue to raise their beautiful children together. Earlier this year, the pair celebrated their 21st wedding anniversary, and life could not be better for the star.