Art Imitates Life
It’s a casting director’s dream. Why struggle to find two stars who have chemistry on screen when you know they already have chemistry in real life? These coupled-up stars got the rare opportunity to act opposite their spouse or partner and in many cases, sparked up some movie and TV magic—though in a few rare cases, it ended in disaster.
Daniel Craig & Rachel Weisz
Bond star Daniel Craig and actress Rachel Weisz had been friends for a while when they began work on the psychological thriller Dream House in late 2010, and they quickly fell for each other, sparking a romance that’s still going strong today. While the film didn’t quite live up to its potential, Craig at least credits it for being the venue where he fell in love with Weisz, saying, "The movie didn't turn out great. But I met my wife. Fair trade”.
Courteney Cox & David Arquette
Like Craig and Weisz, Cox and Arquette fell in love while working on the original Scream. They went on to star in multiple sequels, while offscreen, their marriage produced a daughter, Coco Arquette, before their eventual divorce in 2013. Arquette also made an appearance on Friends during their relationship, playing a man who inadvertently stalked Phoebe after dating her twin, Ursula.
Dimension Films, Scream (1996)
Jeffrey Dean Morgan & Hilarie Burton
This charming couple took on an incredibly dark storyline when Burton made an appearance on The Walking Dead, where Morgan played the villain Negan. Burton played his wife Lucille in flashbacks that showed his story, and how he’d scavenged for chemotherapy meds for her during the Trials to keep her alive.
AMC, The Walking Dead (2010-2022)
Tom Hanks & Rita Wilson
Hanks and his future wife initially met on the set of the TV comedy Bosom Buddies, but when they reunited for Volunteers in 1985, the chemistry was undeniable. Hanks divorced his first wife in 1987 and married Wilson a year later. Aside from those roles, Hanks also appeared in Wilson’s music video for her song “Girls Night In”.
Kirsten Dunst & Jesse Plemons
Both serious actors with a capital “A,” Dunst and Plemons met on the set of Fargo and have been together ever since. They also can’t stop acting together, and have also appeared in The Power of the Dog and Civil War, and Dunst even made an uncredited cameo in a Black Mirror episode starring Plemons.
Netflix, The Power of the Dog (2021)
Elizabeth Taylor & Richard Burton
They might have done it first—and they certainly did it most prolifically. The ultimate A-list Hollywood couple starred in a whopping 11 films together, appearing as a couple in most of them, including Cleopatra and Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Twentieth Century, Cleopatra (1963)
Kurt Russell & Goldie Hawn
One of Hollywood’s most enduring—and technically, unmarried—couples, Russell & Hawn most recently played Santa and Mrs Claus on The Christmas Chronicles. But real fans know this iconic pairing goes all the way back to the hilarious 1980s comedy Overboard. But that’s not all. They also starred in Swing Shift together and first met all the way back in 1968 on the set of The One and Only, Genuine, Original Family Band.
Ben McKenzie & Morena Baccarin
Both stars appeared on The OC, though never together. While McKenzie got his big break on the show, Baccarin had to wait for Homeland for hers. Eventually, the both ended up on the cast of Gotham, and sparks flew. In her divorce filing from her first husband, Baccarin said that she planned to marry her co-star and was pregnant with his child. The divorce was finalized shortly after the child’s birth.
Keri Russell & Matthew Rhys
In 2013, Keri Russell began appearing in the drama series The Americans opposite Matthew Rhys. The show was an instant critical hit—and within a year, Russell had separated from her husband of six years and was dating Rhys, her co-star. The pair have been together ever since, and though they refer to each other as husband and wife, they “literally haven’t got round to marriage yet", according to Rhys.
Sheila Kelly & Richard Schiff
Their names might not immediately be recognizable, but their faces certainly are—Kelly and Schiff are two incredibly prolific character actors. Kelly was part of the casts of LA Law and Sisters, while Schiff is best known for portraying Toby on The West Wing. The two came together on The Good Doctor, where Schiff had a main role and Kelly had a recurring one as his love interest.
ABC, The Good Doctor (2017-2024)
John Krasinski & Emily Blunt
While many Office fans might have wished that Jim would end up with Pam IRL, the sitcom star fell for actress Emily Blunt in November 2008, and the pair tied the knot in Italy in 2010. Krasinski directed, co-wrote, and starred opposite his wife in 2018’s A Quiet Place, and the pair collaborated again on its 2020 sequel. The pair were also part of the team who came up with the idea for Lip Sync Battle.
Paramount, A Quiet Place (2018)
Liza Colón-Zayas & David Zayas
While Liza Colón-Zayas has had a prolific stage career, most know her for her Emmy-winning turn on The Bear as Tina. Eagle-eyed fans noted that her husband on that show, shown ever so briefly, was played by her real-life husband, David Zayas, a fellow actor who played Angel on Dexter and Enrique on Oz.
Lauren Bacall & Humphrey Bogart
When it comes to sizzling on-screen chemistry, Bogie and Bacall set the standard that people have been trying to chase for decades. From their first appearance together in To Have and To Have Not to The Big Sleep, Dark Passage, and Key Largo, they truly had an unforgettable run.
Warner Bros., The Big Sleep (1946)
Brad Pitt & Angelina Jolie
Well, they may not have been a married couple when the filming for Mr & Mrs Smith began, but by the end, even they could no longer deny what was so apparent to everyone—including Pitt's soon-to-be ex-wife, Jennifer Aniston. The A-list pair became an item after his divorce from Aniston in 2005 and were together until their acrimonious breakup in 2019.
Twentieth Century, Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2005)
Mila Kunis & Ashton Kutcher
The pair first met while playing teenaged couple Jackie and Kelso on That 70s Show when Kunis was just 15 and Kutcher was 20. Kutcher went on to date Brittany Murphy and marry Demi Moore, while Kunis was in a long-term relationship with Macauley Culkin. Kunis and Kutcher then began dating in 2012 and got married in 2015.
FOX, That '70s Show (1998-2006)
Kelly Ripa & Mark Consuelos
Before they co-hosted Live! With Kelly and Mark, the two were co-stars on All My Children. They actually met on set and eloped in 1996.
WABC-TV, Live with Kelly and Mark (1983-)
Bill Hayes & Susan Seaforth
Ripa and Consuelo weren’t the only couple who came together on the set of a soap opera. Bill Hayes and Susan Seaforth met on the set of Days of our Lives when their characters fell in love. They ended up tying the knot—and so did the actors who portrayed them.
NBC, Days of Our Lives (1965-)
Bonnie Bartlett & William Daniels
Daniels is best known as the beloved teacher Mr Feeny on Boy Meets World, where his real-life wife played his on-screen spouse. The pair also appeared together in the classic 1980s hospital drama St Elsewhere. The pair have been married for a whopping 71 years, having tied the knot in 1951.
NBC, St. Elsewhere (1982-1988)
Jared Padalecki & Genevieve Cortese
Padalecki first met his future wife when she made an appearance on his long-running show Supernatural. He proposed to her in front of their favorite painting at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City in 2009 and got married in 2010. From 2019 to 2024, Padalecki starred in Walker, a reboot of Walker, Texas Ranger, and Cortese appeared as his character’s late wife.
The CW, Supernatural (2005-2020)
Will Smith & Jada Pinkett Smith
Though the current status of their relationship remains in question, the Smiths have been together since 1997, after initially meeting when she auditioned for his show The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Though she didn’t get the part, she later joined him on screen as Sonji Roi in the biopic Ali.
Ginnifer Goodwin & Josh Dallas
In another case of finding love on set, Ginnifer Goodwin first met Josh Dallas when they were cast opposite each other as Snow White and Prince Charming on Once Upon a Time. They got engaged in 2013 and married in 2014.
ABC, Once Upon a Time (2011-2018)
Megan Mullaly & Nick Offerman
Megan Mullaly was already sitcom royalty thanks to Will & Grace before most of us knew Nick Offerman. But when writers on Parks & Rec decided to build out his iconic character Ron Swanson’s backstory, they knew just who to turn to to play his unhinged ex, Tammy II.
Though Patricia Clarkson gave her a run for her money as Tammy I, the deranged hilarity that ensued when Ron & Tammy II got back together is unmatched.
NBC, Parks and Recreation (2009-2015)
You May Also Like
