Filipino Cinema Superstar Nora Aunor Has Passed Away — Was She Married?

In April 2025, the world lost a superstar: Filipino cinema actor Nora Aunor passed away at the age of 71. She was a legend in the industry, thought to be the most highly awarded Filipino actress of all time.

But as the world honored her legacy and looked back at the career she left behind, many people wondered about her private life. Was she married? Here's what we know about her marriage, her kids, and the legacy she left.

Nora's death was announced on April 17, 2025. No cause of death was listed in reports on her passing, and fans were shocked to hear of her death.

The first announcement came from her daughter, Lotlet de León, who wrote, "It is with deep sorrow that we announce the passing of Nora Aunor, our beloved mother, celebrated television and movie actress, and a true National Artist of the Philippines."

Lot is one of several of Nora's children, which begs the question: Was Nora married at any point?

And the answer is yes. She was married to fellow Filipino actor Christopher de León from 1975 to 1999, according to NBC News. Little is publicly known about their divorce, but they shared five children together.

Those children, Lotlet, Ian, Matet, Kiko, and Kenneth de León, honored their mother after her passing. Lotlet added, "She was a star not only on screen, but in the hearts of many—and stars like hers never stop shining," adding, "Her light lives on forever loved, never forgotten."

Those five children, most of whom grew up to act and gain their own fame, were not her only legacy, however.

Nora was considered one of the greatest Filipino actors of all time. In 2014, the then-President of the Philippines, Benigno Aquino III, denied her nomination to the honor of National Artist for Film and Broadcast Arts for a previous drug arrest, according to NBC. CNN reports that her lawyer claimed the drug charges were due to someone else's mistake, and they were dropped after she completed a program.

However, in 2022, she was nominated again and granted the award, considered the most prestigious award for cinema in the Philippines.

She was noted for her roles in Tatlong Taong Walang Diyos (Three Years Without God), Bulaklak sa City Jail (Flowers of the City Jail), and The Flor Contemplacion Story, among other film projects.

The outlet adds that she wasn't always rich and famous; in fact, she came from an impoverished family in the Camarines Sur province, where she was born to the name Nora Cabaltera Villamayor.

As a child, she sold water at a train station, NBC writes, first gaining a role in acting in the 1960s when she was just a teenager.

Nora was reportedly estranged from her children for some time, but they came together after her passing to praise their mom, her legacy, and their memory of her, per ABS-CBN.

She left the world with many beloved projects under her belt, five proud children, and a handful of awards, including multiple best actress awards.

While her presence will be sorely missed by those who loved her, her face, her voice, and her memory will be everywhere for years to come thanks to her prolific cinema career.