The Mary Kay Letourneau case, this crazy relationship between a teacher and her 12-year-old student that shocked America.

She plays a woman whose love life is set ablaze by the tabloid press. In May DecemberBy Todd Haynes In theaters Wednesday, January 24, Julianne Moore stars as Gracie Atherton-Yu, a fifty-year-old who has an affair with a teenager (Charles Melton) before marrying him. A fictional film in which he stars with Natalie Portman, the famous actress Elizabeth Berry, who is closely interested in Gracie’s story. As surreal as the plot of this Oscar-nominated feature film for Best Original Screenplay may seem, it is indeed inspired by a true story. Who shook America?

Tormented period

It all begins at the dawn of the 1990s, in a peaceful suburb of Seattle. Mary Kay Letourneau, an uneventful mother, at least on the surface, works as a teacher in the CE1 classroom. Amazed by the artistic talents of one of her students, Willy Fualau, the school teacher decides to take him under her wing. A meeting that will change his fate. Over the next few years, she bought supplies for the little boy, took him to the museum, and encouraged him to develop his passion for poetry. But in the fall of 1995, the bond between the pre-teen and the teacher grew closer.

Mary Kay Letourneau then becomes her 6th grade teacher.^e at Shorewood Elementary School in Burien. In the evening, the teacher invites her student to her house and helps him with his homework. The two share a “mutual respect” and “understanding” that “grows over time,” the teacher said. Moments of guilt that “comfort” her in these troubled months. Her marriage in particular is in trouble, consumed by money problems and “physical and emotional” abuse, which she accuses her husband Steve of. In January 1996, this mother of four also suffered a miscarriage, which devastated her.

love letters

Six months later, he crossed the lines he was already flirting with. A few days before Willy Fualau’s 13th birthday, the teacher and her student have sex. In a 2015 interview with Barbara Walters, Mary Kay Letourneau looks back on the night where everything changed. “The incident happened late at night and it didn’t end with a kiss… she says. I thought we’d stop there, but we didn’t.” She later confided to Oprah Winfrey that she saw Willie Fualaou as “the love of her life”.

But in February 1997, Steve, Mary Kay’s husband, discovered love letters in their home. He is in a hurry to alert the authorities. One of his friends calls the teenager’s school to denounce the relationship between the teacher and his student. He does not know that it is already late. Mary Kay Letourneau was six months pregnant when she was arrested in 1997. on March 4. And while Willie Fualau claims they planned to have this baby to “strengthen their bond”, the mother denies planning this pregnancy. He barely admits that he “didn’t get angry” after hearing the news.

Relapse

On May 29, 1997, she gave birth to their daughter, Audrey, in prison. Three months later, the teacher agreed in court to follow a program for sex offenders. But also medicated for his bipolar disorder and permanently cut ties with his student. He was sentenced to six months in prison, suspended for seven and a half years.

In early 1998, the professor was enjoying his newfound freedom. And decides, on that occasion, to discontinue his treatment for bipolar disorder. But also to rebel against his personal adviser, who is dedicated to supporting sex offenders. A call from Willie Fualaau in February 1998 soon awoke the old demons. The next morning, Mary Kay Letourneau was surprised in the back of the car with a teenager. This time, the former professor is sentenced to seven and a half years in prison. Their second daughter, Georgia, was also born behind bars. The professor will remain on the sex offenders’ register for the rest of his life.

“Who deserves mom’s attention the most?”

In the summer of 2004, the sun is shining in Seattle as Mary Kay Letourneau is released from prison for the second time. He immediately finds the arms of Willy Fualau, now 21 years old. The latter also hastens to ask her to marry him. In 2005, the couple sealed their union in the presence of 200 guests. Then it disappears for a while, out of sight. Willy Fualau and Mary Kay Letourneau long for a “normal” routine. In later years, the couple went on vacations, for example, with their two daughters and Mary Kay’s four children.

The only downside is that Willy Fualau has a somewhat strained relationship with his partner’s older son, who is a year younger than him. “I feel in a little competition with him,” he will say. We say to ourselves. “Who deserves mom’s attention the most?” America, for its part, is just recovering from the shock. In May 2009, the couple made a surprise appearance at a theme party Hot Teacher’s Night! (read, “sexy teacher night”) at a bar in Seattle is therefore raising some eyebrows.

“This is not our story”

It was only in 2015 that the couple spoke publicly about their relationship on the occasion of ten years of marriage. “There’s a story going around about our lives, but it’s not our story,” Mary Kay said on CNN’s “20/20.” In 2018, she also stated on Channel 7 that she was unaware of the illicit nature of her relationship with Willie Fualau. When asked if she was wrongly convicted, Mary Kay Letourneau said flatly: “Absolutely”:

For his part, Willy Fualau is more nuanced. On the set of the show, she insists she understands the reluctance the couple faced early on in their relationship. When asked whether he likes his daughters’ romance, the father of the family answers: I do not support this idea.” Later, he also talks about the depression he went through after this news whirlwind. “I’m surprised I’m still alive today,” he admits. I went through a very dark time.’

lack of respect”

Although they have overcome many challenges, the couple cannot stand the passage of time. In May 2017, Willie Fualau announced that he was divorcing his wife. Their divorce was officially confirmed two years later. The story ends in early 2020 when Mary Kay is diagnosed with devastating cancer. He died at the age of 58, in July of the same year. For his part, Willie Fualau is rebuilding himself in the shadows. He worked as a DJ in Seattle for a while and welcomed his third daughter, Sophia, from another romance in 2022. He is now going to become a grandfather.

In January 2024, however, Willie Fualau broke his silence. Then he announced that he does not approve of the project in any way. May December, which is why they didn’t even contact him. “I am offended by the whole project and the lack of respect shown to me, who really lived this story and who is still living it,” he stressed. Now the forty-year-old’s past doesn’t seem to be done haunting him. In 2017, attorney David Gerke said of his history with Mary Kay Letourneau: “I’m sure they were completely in love. But sometimes people who are completely in love have a hard time staying that way.”