Ethan Hawke says he fell in love with Uma Thurman as he stood behind her in the queue for the cashpoint machine.
The 31-year-old star said he was smitten with the Pulp Fiction actress during their first encounter in Manhattan's East Village when the couple were still in their early 20s, the New York Post reports.
The couple did not meet again for five years when they were cast together in Gattaca. This time she did recognise him and they started going out, eventually marrying in 1998.
Hawke, who had his big break in the film Dead Poets Society, said: "I was standing behind her on line and thinking she was the most beautiful creature I'd ever seen.
"I introduced myself, but she hadn't seen my film and was polite, but just treated me like any fan."
But Hawke said when he told her about their first encounter "Uma just looked at me and said she had not the slightest recollection of that night".