This woman was married to one of Hollywood’s famous comedians for almost twenty years. However, their marriage eventually crumbled years after she sacrificed one of her organs for him.
This woman is also a star in her own right. Moreover, she is a mother of one and shares a daughter with her ex-husband, whom she remains cordial with even after their split.
The former couple wed in September 1993 and welcomed their only child together three years later in April 1996. Several years into their marriage, they experienced a significant challenge.
The well-known husband started having health issues, which led to a life-or-death situation. Thankfully, the woman stepped up to save his life. But things started to fall apart after.
George Lopez and Anna Serrano pictured leaving the Santa Maria Superior Court on March 28, 2005 in Santa Maria, California. | Source: Getty Images
The woman who wed a popular public figure is “Curb Your Enthusiasm” actress Ann Serrano, whose husband was actor George Lopez. Their lives were disrupted when, in 2005, his kidneys shut down, and he needed a kidney transplant to live.
In the biography, “George Lopez: Latino King of Comedy,” the events that transpired surrounding the transplant were rehashed, revealing that due to his fame, George did not want people to find out about his health scare.
The television star was starring in the hit sitcom, “The George Lopez Show,” then. He and Ann also did not want their then-nine-year-old daughter, Mayan Lopez, to know that he was extremely sick and protected her from reading about it in the press.
George Lopez and Ann Serrano during the George Lopez/Great Chefs of LA event at the Ritz-Carlton Marina del Rey on November 12, 2006 in Marina del Rey, California | Source: Getty Images
The couple slipped into Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles on April 19, 2005. George was admitted under a false name, Tom Ace. He had to undergo surgery, and thankfully, his then-wife, Ann, was a perfect match as a possible donor.
While Ann was optimistic and not scared of giving George her kidney because she knew that she was saving his life, the comedian feared he wouldn’t make it. George worried about their daughter and not being able to live to see her graduate from high school or get married.
Ann Serrano, Mayan Lopez, and George Lopez in the set of “The George Lopez Show,” in 2006 | Source: Getty Images
But Ann reassured him that everything would be fine after the operation. That said, the pair were secretly taken into side-by-side operating rooms as the first surgical team worked on Ann while the second team tended to her husband.
The surgery was a success, and the night after, George and Ann’s daughter visited them at the hospital, but she only saw her mom, who said she did not feel the difference of having only one functioning kidney.
George Lopez, Mayan Lopez, and Ann Serrano during the 20th annual Kid’s Choice Awards at Pauley Pavilion on March 31, 2007 in Los Angeles, California. | Source: Getty Images
Nonetheless, Ann and George fully recovered as his body did not reject the kidney. Three weeks later, the father of one was out playing golf. As for his wife, she had this to say about the experience:
“It’s amazing to be able to help another human being in this way. You’re giving the gift of life.”
Ann Serrano and George Lopez at the 35th Annual AFI Life Achievement Award honoring Al Pacino at the Kodak Theater on June 7, 2007 in Hollywood, California. | Source: Getty Images
Meanwhile, George also had some heartwarming words about the mother of his child’s selfless act in a time of need and expressed how his life changed from there on. He said:
“I think it was a miracle that my wife’s kidney could be used. Now, I value each day because I don’t know how long this organ will hold out.”
George Lopez and Ann Serrano during The 32nd Annual People’s Choice Awards at Shrine Auditorium on January 10, 2006 in Los Angeles, California | Source: Getty Images
As for Ann, she was deemed a hero for saving her husband’s life, but she disregarded that belief, saying, “There was no question. When you are put in that position where you could possibly lose someone you love, it’s a very easy decision.”
After all they went through together, George and Ann went their separate ways after 17 years together. Their divorce, which was filed in 2010, was finalized in July 2011. The producer spoke candidly about her union with the TV star and revealed how George’s difficult upbringing played a hand in the demise of their marriage.
George Lopez, Mayan Lopez, and Ann Serrano during the SAG-AFTRA and WGA Strike outside Warner Bros. Studios on September 15, 2023 in Burbank, California | Source: Getty Images
The same month her divorce from George became public, he appeared on CNN, where he candidly talked about their split. During the interview, Piers Morgan mentioned that George received flack for ending his marriage with Ann.
The broadcaster asked the movie star what role he played in breaking his marriage, and George admitted that he deserved the backlash he received following the news of the split.
He and Ann, whom he described as “funny” and “great,” seemed like the ultimate couple to many, Morgan asserted. But that was not the case, as George cheated on Ann during their marriage.
In a TikTok video from July 2021, the exes’ daughter candidly asked them for the reason they decided to part ways, and Ann pointed at her former spouse, revealing:
“Your dad didn’t realize you have to stop dating when you get married and stop dating other people when you get married.”
A year later, Mayan posted another TikTok clip which showed her twerking in the background along with the caption that read: “He cheated. She divorced him. We kept almost everything.”
The 27-year-old, who followed in her parent’s acting footsteps, revealed then that she would be appearing on a television show based on her real-life family drama on NBC.
In January 2023, George appeared on “The View,” where he talked about the hit show “Lopez vs. Lopez,” in which he stars alongside his daughter Mayan. It is based on his real-life story with his family.
The California native admitted he did not want to open up about his personal life to this extent. Still, because his family fell apart due to him, he needed to take some accountability for it.
George also acknowledged that he hurt Mayan in the process of breaking up with her mom. The father-and-daughter duo even went to therapy together to work on their issues. Asked about their therapy journey together, he said it was difficult, and it was awkward after sessions.
Regardless of what transpired between George and Ann, the ex-spouses remain cordial and still hold each other dear. Mayan, who was estranged from her father since the divorce, asked her parents a decade later whether they still loved each other, and the pair admitted that they still do. Ann even referred to George Lopez as her “husband” and “friend,” while he said, “I love Ann.”
