Some began as co-stars, others as rivals, and a few were already engaged or married to other people. These are the celebrities whose on-screen chemistry turned into real-life romance
Who are they? Penélope Cruz and Javier Bardem. What film brought them together? ‘Jamón, jamón’ (1992), directed by Bigas Luna. But their romance did not truly begin until 15 years later, during the filming of ‘Vicky Cristina Barcelona,’ with Woody Allen and Scarlett Johansson as unlikely witnesses. What happened next? The second chance worked. They married in 2010 and are now parents of two children. And now? They are sharing the screen once again in ‘Bunker,’ which has just premiered at the Venice Film Festival.Stefania D’Alessandro (WireImage)Who are they? Penélope Cruz and Tom Cruise. What film brought them together? ‘Vanilla Sky’ (2001), the Hollywood remake of Alejandro Amenábar’s ‘Abre los ojos.’ (Open Your Eyes). What happened next? The two embarked on a relationship that lasted about three years before ending in 2004. Why did they split? A combination of intense media scrutiny, conflicting schedules and religious differences. Cruise is a devoted member of the Church of Scientology, while Cruz did not share his commitment to the faith.Dave Benett (Getty Images)Who are they? Penélope Cruz and Matthew McConaughey. What film brought them together? The adventure movie ‘Sahara’ (2005), where they met shortly after Cruz’s relationship with Tom Cruise had ended. What happened next? Their on-screen chemistry quickly turned into a real-life romance. How long did it last? Just over a year. They split in 2006, citing the distance between them and the demands of their respective careers as the main reasons for the breakup.Mehdi Taamallah (FilmMagic)Who are they? Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman. What film brought them together? ‘Days of Thunder’ (1990), in which they played a race-car driver and a doctor who fall in love. What happened next? They married later that year, adopted two children and became one of Hollywood’s most famous couples. Their marriage lasted a decade before they separated in 2001 and finalized their divorce later that year. Why did they split? Kidman later spoke about living in the shadow of her husband’s fame. Media reports and subsequent accounts also pointed to several factors behind the breakup, including the couple’s demanding careers and Cruise’s deep involvement with the Church of Scientology.Matt Turner (Getty Images)Who are they? Zendaya and Tom Holland. What film brought them together? ‘Spider-Man: Homecoming’ (2017), in which they played Peter Parker and MJ. What happened next? The chemistry between their characters eventually carried over into real life, though they did not publicly confirm their relationship until 2021. And then? They got engaged in 2025 and married in a secret ceremony this year, with no wedding photos or details of the bride’s dress leaked so far. They have also reunited on screen in the latest Spider-Man film, which has become another major box-office success.Pablo Cuadra (Getty Images)Who are they? Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. What film brought them together? ‘Mr. & Mrs. Smith’ (2005), in which they played a married pair of assassins unaware of each other’s true identity. What happened next? Pitt separated from Jennifer Aniston and began a relationship with Jolie. Together they built one of Hollywood’s most famous families, raising six children, three biological and three adopted. And then? They married in 2014 but split two years later, setting off a long and bitter legal battle that was finally resolved years later. Many of their children have since distanced themselves from their father, with several choosing to drop the Pitt surname.MJ Kim (Getty Images)Who are they? Brad Pitt and Gwyneth Paltrow. What film brought them together? ‘Se7en’ (1995), David Fincher’s thriller in which Paltrow played the wife of the detective portrayed by Pitt. What happened next? Paltrow has said it was close to love at first sight. The couple became one of Hollywood’s most glamorous pairings and even got engaged. Why did they split? Their careers were just taking off and, by their own account, they were too young for such a serious commitment. They ended their relationship in 1997. Nearly three decades later, Paltrow still speaks warmly of Pitt and considers him a good friend.Kevin.Mazur (WireImage)Who are they? Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton. What film brought them together? ‘Cleopatra’ (1963), in which Taylor played the Egyptian queen and Burton portrayed Mark Antony. What happened next? Their off-screen romance proved every bit as dramatic as the film itself. Both were married when the relationship began, sparking one of Hollywood’s most notorious scandals. They divorced their respective spouses and married in 1964. And then? After a decade together, they divorced in 1974, remarried the following year and divorced again in 1976. Their relationship was defined by passion, volatility and an enduring professional bond. Over the years, they appeared together in more than a 11 films. Bob Penn (Bob Penn)Who are they? Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams. What film brought them together? ‘The Notebook’ (2004), in which they played Noah and Allie, lovers separated by circumstance who eventually reunite in one of the most beloved screen romances of the 21st century. What happened next? Despite reportedly clashing during filming, complete with arguments and tensions on set, the two eventually grew close. As the saying goes, there’s a fine line between love and hate, and they crossed it in the opposite direction. And then? They began dating in 2005, became one of Hollywood’s most popular young couples and ultimately ended their relationship in 2007. J. Shearer (WireImage)Who are they? Ryan Gosling and Eva Mendes. What film brought them together? ‘The Place Beyond the Pines’ (2012), in which they played former lovers who reconnect after he discovers he is the father of her child. What happened next? They began dating during filming and, more than a decade later, are still together. They married in secret, have two daughters and have built one of Hollywood’s most enduring and private relationships, rarely appearing together in public.Robert Kamau (GC Images)Who are they? Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart. What film brought them together? ‘Twilight’ (2008), the defining young-adult phenomenon of its generation, in which they played star-crossed teenage lovers Edward Cullen and Bella Swan. What happened next? They were together for more than four years before photographs emerged of Stewart kissing director Rupert Sanders, triggering a crisis that ultimately ended the relationship. The couple briefly reconciled, but split for good in 2013.George Pimentel (WireImage)Who are they? Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds. What film brought them together? ‘Green Lantern’ (2011), a superhero blockbuster that may have disappointed at the box office but proved far more successful as a matchmaker. What happened next? They began dating shortly after filming, married in 2012 and have since become one of Hollywood’s most enduring couples. They have four children and are famous for turning social media into a friendly battleground of marital teasing and one-upmanship. John Nacion (Variety via Getty Images)Who are they? Michael Fassbender and Alicia Vikander. What film brought them together? ‘The Light Between Oceans,’ which began filming in 2014. They played a married couple living in a lighthouse whose lives are transformed after they find a baby. What happened next? They married in a small, private ceremony in Ibiza in 2017 and have two children. More than a decade after meeting, they are still together and continue to keep their family life largely out of the spotlight.Andreas Rentz (Getty Images for Peugeot)Who are they? Lauren Bacall and Humphrey Bogart. What film brought them together? ‘To Have and Have Not’ (1944), which marked Bacall’s film debut at the age of 19. What happened next? Neither their age gap, he was 44, nor Bogart’s marriage prevented them from falling in love during filming. Bogart eventually divorced his wife, and the two married in 1945. They remained together until his death in 1957 and had two children.Hulton Archive (Getty Images)Who are they? Matthew Rhys and Keri Russell. What series brought them together? ‘The Americans,’ in which they played Philip and Elizabeth Jennings, a married couple of Soviet spies living undercover in the United States. What happened next? The chemistry between Philip and Elizabeth did not stay on screen. Rhys and Russell began a relationship in 2013 and have a son together, though they have never married. What’s the twist? Rhys had actually tried to ask Russell out years earlier, but she turned him down the first time around.Frazer Harrison (WireImage)Who are they? Rachel Weisz and Daniel Craig. What film brought them together? ‘Dream House’ (2011), in which they played a married couple. What happened next? The two had known each other for years, but their relationship began during filming. They married later that year in a private ceremony in New York attended by just four guests. They are still together and have a daughterGotham (FilmMagic)Who are they? Kit Harington and Rose Leslie. What series brought them together? ‘Game of Thrones,’ in which they played Jon Snow and Ygritte, lovers destined for one of the show’s most tragic romances. What happened next? Their on-screen relationship blossomed into a real-life one. They married in Scotland in 2018 at Leslie’s family castle and have two children together.Jeff Kravitz (FilmMagic)Who are they? Jesse Plemons and Kirsten Dunst. What series brought them together? ‘Fargo,’ whose second season cast them as a married couple caught up in a criminal conspiracy. What happened next? They got engaged a year after they started dating and have two children together. They eventually married in 2022 and later reunited on screen in ‘The Power of the Dog,’ earning Oscar nominations for their performances.Arnold Jerocki (GC Images)Who are they? Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson. What film brought them together? ‘Volunteers’ (1985), in which they starred together after first meeting a few years earlier on the television series ‘Bosom Buddies.’ What happened next? That second collaboration cemented a relationship that has endured ever since. They married in 1988, have two children and are considered one of Hollywood’s longest-lasting and most stable couples.Stefanie Keenan (Getty Images for LACMA)Who are they? Ewan McGregor and Mary Elizabeth Winstead. What series brought them together? ‘Fargo.’ In the third season, filmed in 2016, McGregor played twin brothers, while Winstead portrayed the fiancée of one of them. What happened next? Both were in relationships when they fell in love. Winstead was married to director Riley Stearns, while McGregor had been married to Eve Mavrakis for 22 years and had four daughters with her. They ended their respective marriages, welcomed a son in 2021 and married in 2022. Michael Buckner (Variety via Getty Images)Who are they? Michelle Williams and Heath Ledger. What film brought them together? ‘Brokeback Mountain’ (2005). Their co-star Jake Gyllenhaal has said that there were already “sparks” between them during the very first table read. What happened next? They shared a brief but intense romance. Within months of meeting, they were engaged and expecting their only child together, a daughter named Matilda. After three years, they announced their separation in September 2007, just a few months before the death of Ledger, who would go on to earn acclaim for his portrayal of the Joker in ‘The Dark Knight.’Dan MacMedan (WireImage)Who are they? Leighton Meester and Adam Brody. What film brought them together? ‘The Oranges’ (2011), a largely forgettable comedy that paired two of the biggest stars of 2000s television. What happened next? Brody was in a relationship at the time, so their connection did not develop immediately. Two years later, they got together, married in 2014 and are now parents of two children.Todd Williamson (Getty Images)Who are they? Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck. What film brought them together? ‘Gigli,’ a film widely regarded as one of Hollywood’s most notorious flops and a major box-office failure. What happened next? Perhaps the better question is: what didn’t happen? Lopez divorced her second husband, dancer Cris Judd, to be with Affleck. The media frenzy surrounding the couple was so intense that they became known simply as “Bennifer.” They got engaged, called off their wedding just days before it was due to take place and eventually went their separate ways, moving on with Marc Anthony and Jennifer Garner, respectively. And then? Nearly two decades later, in 2021, they reunited and finally made it down the aisle. But their second chance lasted less than three years. The question now is whether there will ever be a third.Steve Granitz (FilmMagic)Who are they? Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner. What film brought them together? ‘Daredevil’ (2003), although they had first met a couple of years earlier while filming ‘Pearl Harbor.’ What happened next? Both were in relationships during the making of ‘Daredevil.’ Garner was married to actor Scott Foley, while Affleck was engaged to Jennifer Lopez. Their romance began later, and they married in 2005. And then? They had three children and remained together for a decade before announcing their separation in 2015. Despite the breakup, they have maintained a close friendship, and Garner has publicly supported Affleck through his struggles with alcoholism.Sylvain Gaboury (FilmMagic)Who are they? Uma Thurman and Ethan Hawke. What film brought them together? ‘Gattaca’ (1997), now considered a classic of 1990s science fiction. What happened next? They became one of Hollywood’s coolest couples and had two children, Maya, now a successful actress in her own right, and Levon. And then? They announced their separation in 2003 amid persistent rumors that Hawke had been unfaithful with the family’s nanny. The actor denied those claims and later described the episode as “humiliating.”Gregg DeGuire (WireImage)Who are they? Naomi Watts and Billy Crudup. What series brought them together? The psychological thriller ‘Gypsy,’ which failed to earn a second season renewal from Netflix. What happened next? The marriage they portrayed on screen eventually became a reality off screen. In 2023, they made their relationship official with an intimate civil wedding in New York, and a year later they said “I do” again in Mexico. And then? Together they have raised the two children from Watts’s previous relationship with actor Liev Schreiber. Their younger child, Kai, 17, took her first steps as a model this autumn, appearing alongside her mother in a campaign for the fashion label Simkhai.Kevin Mazur (Kevin Mazur/Getty Images)Who are they? Jason Momoa and Adria Arjona. What film brought them together? ‘Sweet Girl’ (2021), in which they played a married couple. What happened next? Their relationship appears to have begun during or after filming, although at the time Momoa was coming to the end of his relationship with Lisa Bonet, with whom he had spent nearly 17 years and shares two children. And then? The split was not made public until 2022, and their divorce was finalized in 2024. That same year, Momoa confirmed his relationship with Arjona. Mike Marsland (Mike Marsland/WireImage)Who are they? Macaulay Culkin and Brenda Song. What film brought them together? ‘Changeland,’ a low-budget comedy. What happened next? The former child star and the Disney Channel actress traveled to Thailand to do the film’s director a favor, only to stay for weeks as their romance began to blossom. And then? They are now parents of two sons and have become one of Hollywood’s most unexpectedly enduring, beloved and closely watched couples.Taylor Hill (FilmMagic)Who are they? Emma Stone and Andrew Garfield. What film brought them together? ‘The Amazing Spider-Man’ (2012). Like the characters they played on screen, Peter Parker and Gwen Stacy, they fell in love. What happened next? They were together for four years and went on to star in a second Spider-Man film before eventually going their separate ways. Today, Stone has a daughter with director Dave McCary, while Garfield is in a relationship with actress Monica Barbaro.Mike Marsland (WireImage)Who are they? Miley Cyrus and Liam Hemsworth. What film brought them together? ‘The Last Song’ (2010), a teen romance that marked Cyrus’s bid to move beyond her Hannah Montana image. What happened next? What followed was a decade-long on-again, off-again relationship, marked by breakups and reconciliations. They eventually married, just days after losing their home in a wildfire. And then? The marriage did not last. Amid speculation about infidelity and other strains on the relationship, the couple divorced. Cyrus later released the global hit ‘Flowers,’ a song widely interpreted as containing references to Hemsworth, and one that earned her the first Grammy Award of her career.Allen Berezovsky (Getty Images)Who are they? Natalia Dyer and Charlie Heaton. What series brought them together? ‘Stranger Things,’ in which they play Nancy Wheeler and Jonathan Byers, two teenagers who fall in love while trying to protect their younger siblings from the forces of evil. What happened next? They met while filming the first season, when their characters were not yet a couple, and rumors of a romance began circulating the following year. And then? They made their relationship red-carpet official in 2017. Nearly a decade later, reports of a possible split have surfaced in several media outlets, though neither actor has confirmed them.Carlos Alvarez (Getty Images)
