Truthfully, celebrity relationships are one of our favorite things. From the adorable, publicized meet-cutes to the details we hear in interviews, we can’t get enough of them. And one of our favorite parts of celebrity relationships is finding out how they met. Some meet on set, some meet through their mutual friends, and some meet in the oddest circumstances. And some of our favorite stories are about how celebrities like Matt Damon, Reese Witherspoon, and more met and fell in love with their non-celebrity partners.
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29 Celebrity Couples Who Were Married to Other People When They Met
Yes, Cinderella stories happen all the time, even in Hollywood romances. It may seem like celebrities all date one another, not even glancing at those that aren’t on the silver screen — but that couldn’t be farther from the truth. From Ariana Grande’s surprise relationship with her real estate agent to some celebrities dating those who work behind the scenes, romance is everywhere — and we love hearing about when some of our favorite A-listers fell for “regular people.”
Regular folk like bartenders, ad executives, and even high school friends have married A-listers despite preferring to stay out of the public eye themselves, and we love the origin stories for all these pairings. Check out some of our favorite celebrity relationships where one celebrity and one regular person tied the knot.
A version of this article was originally published in Nov 2021.
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Terry Crews & Rebecca Crews
Image Credit: Photo by Gregg DeGuire/WireImage. Terry Crews and music minister Rebecca Crews have been married since 1989, and have welcomed five children together.
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George Lucas & Mellody Hobson
Image Credit: Photo by David Livingston/Getty Images. George Lucas married the co-CEO of Ariel Investments Mellody Hobson in 2013 after meeting in 2005. They later welcomed one daughter.
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Ken Jeong & Tran Ho
Image Credit: Photo by Leon Bennett/Getty Images for Critics Choice Association. Actor Ken Jeong and family physician Tran Ho have been together since 2002, later marrying in 2004 and welcoming twin daughters.
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Michelle Yeoh & Jean Henri Todt
Image Credit: Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images for Montblanc. Oscar-winning actress Michelle Yeoh and French motor racing executive Jean Henri Todt engaged within year of their relationship starting, but they didn’t wed until 2023!
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Joseph Gordon-Levitt & Tasha McCauley
Image Credit: Getty Images Lovebirds Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Tasha McCauley are not only one of the most private couples, but they’re also one of the coolest. Seriously, did you know McCauley is a robotics engineer?! Obsessed.
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Dane Cook & Kelsi Taylor
Image Credit: Photo by Alison Buck/Getty Images for SBIFF. In 2017, Dane Cook and fitness instructor Kelsi Taylor started dating, and they later married in 2023.
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Fatima Farheen Mirza & Riz Ahmed
Image Credit: Photo by Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic. Novelist Fatima Farheen Mirza and actor/ rapper Riz Ahmed secretly wed in 2020.
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Lindsay Lohan & Bader Shammas
Image Credit: Photo by Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for Netflix. Lindsay Lohan and financial guru Bader Shammas started dating in 2018. They got engaged in Nov 2021 before eloping in July 2022 (followed by a gorgeous honeymoon in Turkey!) They later welcomed one son.
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Julianna Margulies & Keith Lieberthal
Image Credit: Photo by Taylor Hill/WireImage. Julianna Margulies and attorney Keith Lieberthal married in 2007 after two years together. They later welcomed a son and have been happily together since.
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Justin Mikita & Jesse Tyler Ferguson
Image Credit: Photo by Gary Gershoff/WireImage. After dating for two years, Jesse Tyler Ferguson announced his engagement to lawyer Justin Mikita in 2012. They married the following year, and then later welcomed two children.
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Taylor Lautner & Taylor Dome
Image Credit: Photo by Mike Coppola/Getty Images. Actor Taylor Lautner and nurse Taylor Dome started dating in 2018, and then, within four years, they married, specifically on Nov 11, 2022.
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Ellie Woods & Jordan Fisher
Image Credit: Michael Buckner/Variety. Ellie Woods and Jordan Fisher were best friends growing up, and started dating when Woods became a student at the University of Alabama where she studied clinical dietetics. They married in Disney World in 2020, and welcomed a son in 2022.
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Anne Hathaway & Adam Shulman
Image Credit: Nina Westervelt for Variety. Anne Hathaway met her future husband, jewelry designer Adam Shulman, at the Palm Springs Film Festival back in 2008. Apparently, for Hathaway, it was love at first sight and they tied the knot four years later, and now have two children together.
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Matthew Lilliard & Heather Helm
Image Credit: Michael Buckner for PMC. Matthew Lilliard met his future wife, realtor Heather Helm in 1998 at a mutual friend’s event. Apparently, it was love at first sight for Lilliard, and when he found out that Helm was going to Italy, he invited himself. and they started dating. They married on August 26, 2000, later welcoming three children.
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Jennifer Lawrence & Cooke Maroney
Image Credit: Swan Gallet/WWD. Jennifer Lawrence met art dealer Cooke Maroney through a mutual friend in 2018, marrying a year later in 2019 and welcoming a child named Cy.
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Alec & Hilaria Baldwin
Image Credit: Steve Eichner/WWD Alec and Hilaria Baldwin were first introduced in Feb 2011 at a vegan restaurant named Pure Food and Wine, when Hilaria worked as a yoga instructor. They started dating months later and married in 2012, later welcoming seven children together.
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Zoe Saldana & Marco Perego
Image Credit: Aurora Rose/Variety. Zoe Saldana and Italian artist Marco Perego started dating back in 2013, marrying only three months later in London in 2013. They remain quite lowkey, but love gushing about their twins Cy and Bowie.
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Eddie Redmayne & Hannah Bagshawe
Image Credit: Michael Buckner/Variety. A-lister Eddie Redmayne met Hannah Bagshawe, a public relations executive, back in high school. Redmayne attended an all-boys school, where Bagshawe attended the neighboring all-girls school. They grew to be close friends but started dating in 2012. After two years, they tied the knot and now have two children together.
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Cynthia Nixon & Christine Marinoni
Image Credit: Bruce Glikas/WireImage. LGBTQ icon Cynthia Nixon met her future wife Christine Marinoni when Nixon spoke for the education nonprofit Alliance for Quality Education, of which Marinoni is the founder. They married in 2012 after same-sex marriage was legalized in the United States.
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Christian Bale & Sibi Blažić
Image Credit: Rob Latour/Variety. Christian Bale and Sibi Blažić met through Bale’s good friend Winona Ryder, where she recommended Blažić for the role of Bale’s personal assistant. But they ended up falling in love, marrying in 2000 and welcoming two children.
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Seth Meyers & Alexi Ashe
Image Credit: Stephen Lovekin/WWD. Like Vince Vaugn, Seth Meyers met his future bride at a wedding. Human rights lawyer Alexi Ashe and Meyers hit it off immediately and got married in 2013. They have three children together, with their youngest being born in Nov 2021.
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Christina Ricci & Mark Hampton
Image Credit: Michael Buckner for Variety. There’s not much known about how Christina Ricci and Mark Hampton met, but we do know that they shortly after calling it quits with her ex-husband James Heerdegen in 2020. Ricci and Hampton started dating, appearing on each other’s Instagrams here and there. They eloped in Oct 2021, welcoming their daughter Cleo on Dec 2021.
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Vince Vaughn & Kyla Weber
Image Credit: Stephen Lovekin/WWD. Once upon a time, Vince Vaughn went to his best friend’s wedding, where his friend introduced him to his new wife’s childhood best friend. Thus, Vaughn met his future wife, a real estate agent named Kyla Weber. They tied the knot in 2010 and now have two children together.
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Jon Bon Jovi & Dorothea Hurley
Image Credit: Clint Spaulding/WWD. Legendary singer Jon Bon Jovi met his future wife Dorothea Hurley in high school. They have been together for over thirty years and have four children together.
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Kevin & Danielle Jonas
Image Credit: Rob Latour/Variety. Jonas Brother member Kevin Jonas met his future bride and mother of his children Danielle Jonas on vacation. The hairstylist was on vacation with her family while Jonas was celebrating with his family in the Bahamas as well. He instantly fell for her and after a couple of years together wed in 2009. They now have two beautiful daughters together.
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Ellen Pompeo & Chris Ivery
Image Credit: Dominique Maitre/ WWD. The Queen of Grey’s Anatomy, Ellen Pompeo, married a non-celebrity. Despite everyone shipping her with Patrick Dempsey, Pompeo met her future husband at the grocery store before she started filming Grey’s Anatomy. He may not be a celebrity, but he has a super cool job — her husband Chris Ivery is a music producer. After meeting in 2003, they grew quite close before getting together six months later. They married in 2007 and have three beautiful children together.
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Patrick Dempsey & Jillian Fink
Image Credit: Donato Sardella/ WWD. Jillian Fink was actually Patrick Dempsey’s hairstylist for three years before they got together. They married in 1999 and have three children together. They filed for divorce in 2015 but reconciled in 2016.
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John Cena & Shay Shariatzadeh
Image Credit: Photo By: Priscilla Grant/Everett Collection. John Cena and Shay Shariatzadeh originally met back in 2019, and it was clearly love at first sight because they married the following year. Shariatzadeh is an engineer, and last we heard, is a product manager at Sonatype, an enterprise software company.
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Amy Schumer & Chris Fischer
Image Credit: Stephen Lovekin/Variety. Amy Schumer met her future husband Chris Fischer in an adorable way. Being a professional chef, Fischer ended up cooking for Schumer when she was on vacation in Martha’s Vineyard. They tied the knot in 2018 and have a son named Gene.
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Lisa Kudrow & Michael Stern
Image Credit: Michael Tran/FilmMagic. Friends alum Lisa Kudrow met her future husband, advertising executive Michael Stern, back when Stern was dating her roommate. Kudrow had a huge crush on him but they didn’t get together for another few years after. They married in 1995 and have a son together named Julian Murray.
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Jon Stewart & Tracey McShane
Image Credit: Charles Eshelman/FilmMagic. Tracey McShane, who was a veterinary technician at the time, said she and Jon Stewart met back in 1996, at a Mexican restaurant. Three years later, Stewart proposed in literally the sweetest way possible. He had the New York Times crossword puzzle clues changed to spell out “Will You Marry Me” and “Tracey.” After over 20 years together and two children, they seem as happy as can be.
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Wanda & Alex Sykes
Image Credit: Priscilla Grant/Everett Collection. Nearly 20 years ago, Wanda Sykes saw Alex Niedbalski on a ferry on New York’s Fire Island — but they didn’t meet officially then. They met when Alex was selling granite countertops that Wanda was interested in. They got married back in 2008.
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Ed Sheeran & Cherry Seaborn
Image Credit: Getty Images Ed Sheeran had a crush on a fellow high schooler of his named Cherry Seaborn. A mutual friend of theirs helped them reconnect a few years back. While he was singing in New York, she was working on Wall Street. They got married in secret back in 2019 and have a beautiful daughter together.
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Dolly Parton & Carl Dean
Image Credit: Derek Storm/Everett Collection. Despite being married for literally 55 years, Dolly Parton and husband, businessman Carl Dean have kept their marriage incredibly hush-hush. It’s hard to find any photo of the pair together unless Parton decides to post one.
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Gal Gadot & Yaron Versano
Image Credit: Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic. Gal Gadot wed her husband, real estate developer Yaron Versano, over a decade before her breakout role in Wonder Woman. They have two beautiful daughters together.
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Thomas Rhett & Lauren Akins
Image Credit: Christopher Polk for Variety. Country music star Thomas Rhett and Lauren Akins’ love story dates back all the way to their childhood. They were childhood friends, started dating in high school, and tied the knot in 2012. They have four daughters together.
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Julia Roberts & Danny Moder
Image Credit: Rob Latour/Variety. While filming the movie The Mexican, Julia Roberts met her future groom camera operator Danny Moder on set. They’ve collaborated on quite a few films since then, but have kept their relationship very low-key.
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George Clooney & Amal Alamuddin
Image Credit: Michael Buckner/Variety. George Clooney and Amal Alamuddin, a human rights lawyer, met through a mutual friend when his friend was stopping by his house in France. His friend even said she was the one George was going to marry, and they were right. They tied the knot in 2014 and in 2017, they gave birth to twins Ella and Alexander.
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Paul Rudd & Julie Yaeger
Image Credit: Dee Cercone/Everett Collection. Paul Rudd met his future wife Julie Yaeger at his publicist’s office. She offered to help him out and drop off his luggage to a friend’s house so he wouldn’t be late for a super important audition. They married in 2003 and have two children together.
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Matt Damon & Luciana Barroso
Image Credit: Elizabeth Goodenough/Everett Collection. Matt Damon’s wife, Luciana Barroso, was a bartender when they first met. He was filming Stuck on You when he noticed Luciana from across the bar. Fans found him, so he hid behind the bar, where the two started chatting. Over a decade later, they have four children and have been happy ever since.
