Christina Sandera, longtime partner of film legend Clint Eastwood, dies at 61

Christina Sandera, the longtime companion of film legend Clint Eastwood , has died at 61.

"Christina was a lovely, caring woman, and I will miss her very much," the 94-year-old Eastwood said in a statement Thursday.

No details about Sandera's death were immediately available, and a representative for Warner Bros. did not comment further when reached by The Times.

Sandera and the Academy Award-winning director reportedly met when she worked as a host at Eastwood’s Mission Ranch Hotel and Restaurant in Carmel-by-the-Sea. They started dating in 2014, but the notoriously private Eastwood remained tight-lipped about their relationship.

While the pair kept quiet about their romance, Sandera occasionally joined the "Dirty Harry" star on red carpets. She made her red-carpet debut with him at the Academy Awards in 2015, when his film "American Sniper" was up for six Oscars. She also joined him at events surrounding 2016's "Sully," 2018's "The Mule" and 2019's "Richard Jewell."

Before his relationship with Sandera, the "Million Dollar Baby" and "Unforgiven" director was married to model Maggie Johnson from 1953 to 1984 and to news anchor Dina Ruiz from 1996 to 2014. He shares a son, actor Scott Eastwood, with ex Jacelyn Reeves and has seven other children from his other relationships.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times .