Atila Altaunbay: Grace Jones’ Ex-Husband — From Bodyguard to Marriage

Atila Altaunbay is best known as the former husband of Grace Jones — the Jamaican-born singer, model, and actress who’s been a cultural force since the late 1970s. Before the marriage, Altaunbay worked as Jones’ personal bodyguard, making their relationship one of the more unusual love stories in entertainment. Born in Turkey and raised in a devout Muslim household, Altaunbay’s decision to marry Jones came at a steep personal cost, including estrangement from his own family. Since their separation around 2004, he’s stayed almost entirely out of the public eye, and very little verified information exists about his current life.

Early Life in Turkey

Atila Altaunbay was born sometime in the 1970s in Turkey — exact dates vary across sources, with some placing his birth year as early as 1971 and others as late as 1976. He grew up as the youngest son in a traditional Muslim family. Details about his parents and siblings haven’t been widely reported, and Altaunbay himself has never spoken publicly about his childhood in any significant detail.

What’s known is that he eventually left Turkey and moved to Belgium, where he studied and began building a life outside his home country. The move to Europe opened doors that wouldn’t have existed for him in Turkey at the time. It was during this period that he started working in personal security, a career path that would eventually put him in the orbit of one of the most iconic performers of the 20th century.

His background — a young Turkish man from a conservative family making his way through Western Europe — gave him a perspective that set him apart from the typical figures in the entertainment world he’d soon enter.

From Bodyguard to Husband

Altaunbay first crossed paths with Grace Jones when he was hired as her personal bodyguard. Jones, who was already a major name in music, film, and fashion, needed someone she could trust for security on the road and at events. Altaunbay fit the role. He was young, fit, and serious about the work.

But the professional relationship didn’t stay professional for long. Jones and Altaunbay developed a romantic connection, and the two began a relationship that raised eyebrows on multiple fronts. The age gap was significant — Jones is roughly 20 years older than Altaunbay. He was a relatively unknown Turkish bodyguard; she was a global celebrity with decades of fame behind her.

None of that stopped them. In 1996, Atila Altaunbay and Grace Jones got married. The wedding reportedly took place in a private ceremony, consistent with how Jones has often handled her personal affairs — loudly public in her art, but selectively private in her relationships.

For Altaunbay, the marriage carried consequences beyond tabloid attention. His family in Turkey disapproved of the union. The reasons were rooted in religious and cultural expectations — marrying a non-Muslim woman, and a famous one at that, didn’t align with his family’s values. According to multiple reports, Altaunbay lost contact with his family after the marriage. It wasn’t a temporary rift. The estrangement appears to have been lasting.

Marriage to Grace Jones

Life with Grace Jones was never going to be ordinary. Jones has always been known for her fierce independence, unpredictable energy, and refusal to conform to anyone’s expectations. By the time she married Altaunbay, she’d already lived several lifetimes’ worth of experiences — modeling for Helmut Newton and Guy Bourdin, releasing albums like Nightclubbing and Slave to the Rhythm, and acting in films like A View to a Kill and Conan the Destroyer.

Altaunbay stepped into that world as her husband and, in many ways, became part of her inner circle in a way few others had. He also became a stepfather figure to Paulo Goude, Jones’ son born in 1979 from her relationship with French artist and photographer Jean-Paul Goude.

The marriage, however, was reportedly turbulent. Both Jones and those close to her have acknowledged that the relationship had its rough patches. Jones isn’t someone who sugarcoats things, and she’s referenced difficult periods in her personal life without going into excessive detail about Altaunbay specifically.

By the early 2000s, the marriage had effectively ended. The couple separated around 2004, though the exact timeline of their split — and whether a formal divorce was ever finalized — remains unclear. Neither party has made definitive public statements about the legal status of their separation.

During their years together, Altaunbay also did some modeling work, though his career in that field never reached any notable level of recognition. His identity remained largely tied to his role as Jones’ husband, which may have been by choice as much as by circumstance.

Life After Grace Jones

After the separation, Atila Altaunbay effectively disappeared from public life. There are no verified interviews, no social media profiles that have been confirmed as his, and no credible reports about where he lives or what he does now.

This level of privacy is unusual in an era where even minor celebrity-adjacent figures maintain some kind of public presence. But Altaunbay has managed to stay completely off the radar. Whether that’s a deliberate choice or simply the result of having no interest in fame, the outcome is the same: almost nothing is known about his life post-Grace Jones.

There’s been occasional speculation online about his whereabouts, but none of it has been substantiated. Some sources have suggested he returned to Europe, possibly Belgium, where he’d lived before meeting Jones. Others have speculated he may have reconnected with his Turkish roots. None of these claims have been verified.

Grace Jones, meanwhile, has continued to perform, release music, and remain a cultural icon well into her 70s. She’s rarely mentioned Altaunbay in interviews in recent years, and the chapter of their marriage seems firmly closed from her side as well.

Net Worth

Atila Altaunbay’s net worth is estimated at around $800,000. Given his low public profile and lack of any known ongoing career in entertainment or business, this figure likely reflects earnings from his years working as a bodyguard and model, as well as any financial arrangements connected to his marriage with Grace Jones.

It’s worth noting that net worth estimates for private individuals with no public financial disclosures are inherently speculative. Without any confirmed income sources or assets, the $800,000 figure should be treated as a rough approximation rather than a verified number.

By comparison, Grace Jones has an estimated net worth of several million dollars, built across decades of work in music, film, and fashion.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are Atila Altaunbay and Grace Jones still married?

They separated around 2004, but it’s unclear whether they ever formally divorced. Neither has publicly confirmed the legal status of their split.

Why did Atila Altaunbay’s family disown him?

His family in Turkey disapproved of his marriage to Grace Jones, primarily for religious and cultural reasons. As a Muslim family, they didn’t accept his decision to marry outside their faith and community, which led to a lasting estrangement.

What does Atila Altaunbay do now?

There’s no verified information about his current activities. He’s maintained an extremely private life since separating from Grace Jones and hasn’t appeared in any public capacity.

Does Atila Altaunbay have children?

He doesn’t have any known biological children. During his marriage to Grace Jones, he was a stepfather figure to her son Paulo Goude, born in 1979 from Jones’ relationship with Jean-Paul Goude.