Celebs Who Waited Decades To Get Married

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According to Guinness World Records, the longest engagement ever was 67 years! There's no set timeline for when a couple should get engaged or married. It's up to them to decide when the time is right (and if marriage is right for them at all!).
Here are 15 celebrity couples who were together for a decade or more before getting engaged or married:
In 2004, Michelle Yeoh met the then-CEO of Ferrari, Jean Todt, while doing publicity for the brand in Shanghai. A little over a month later, he popped the question.
In 2021, Michelle told the Guardian, "We've been threatening to get married for such a long time. Sometimes we say, 'Wait, didn't we already do it?'"
And in 2022, she told Town & Country that they wanted a simple ceremony, but they'd been too busy to plan it. She said, "He counts the number of days rather than the years. I'll ask him, 'What is the present for 6,725 days?'"
They got married in 2023. Their wedding programs said, "Today after 6,992 days on 27th July 2023 in Geneva, surrounded by loving family and friends, we are so happy to celebrate this special moment together!"
In 2005, Robin Roberts and Amber Laign were set up on a blind date. In an Instagram post marking their 15th anniversary, Amber shared, "15 years ago I met you for drinks on a blind date that both you and I tried to cancel...twice. Your grace caught my eye right away and the ease of the evening continued to flow through dinner 😘 We had a second date soon after and I couldn't believe how at ease I was with you as we shared each other's lives sipping lychee and apple martinis 😳 You left for Tahiti the following day and during that time apart I grew this feeling inside of me that still, is very present today....butterflies. Having you by my side is a gift as we continue to navigate this thing called life. I drive you crazy....I know which is why I love you even more to this day."
For nearly two decades, the couple has stood by each other through everything, including their breast cancer diagnoses. On a 2023 episode of Good Morning America, several months after Amber completed radiation, Robin said, "I'm hesitating because I haven't said it out loud yet … I'm saying 'yes' to marriage. We're getting married this year. It was something we had talked about, but we had put it off. She became ill but … it is saying yes to that, and that next chapter."
Robin and Amber got married in September 2023. They announced it in the most adorable way possible — an Instagram post from their dog! The picture of Lukas in a bowtie was captioned, "My mommies are MARRIED!!!! Married?……yes….married!!! 👰🏾‍♀️👰✨"
Cristiano Ronaldo first met Georgina Rodríguez at the Gucci store in Madrid, where she was working as a sales associate, in 2016. By early 2017, they were official. In her Netflix docuseries I Am Georgina, she said, "We had a very special start to our relationship... Many times, he'd come after work. He would come, I remember once, once in a Bugatti. My coworkers went crazy. They get there on the bus, and I would leave in a Bugatti. I mean, people couldn't believe it."
Alongside raising Cristiano's oldest three kids, the couple went on to welcome three children together — Alana in 2017 and twins Bella and Ángel in 2022. Sadly, Ángel passed away.
Cristiano and Georgina often faced speculation on when they'd finally tie the knot, especially after they relocated to Saudi Arabia, where it's illegal for unmarried couples to live together or have children. In Georgina's Netflix series, Cristiano explained why he was waiting to propose, even though he was "1,000% sure" he would marry her one day. He said, "I always tell her, 'When we get that click.' Like everything with our life, and she knows what I'm talking about. It could be in a year, or it could be in six months, or it could be in a month."
In 2025, after almost a decade together, Cristiano finally popped the question with an absolutely massive ring. Sharing the moment on Instagram, Georgina said (translated from Spanish), "Yes I do. In this and in all my lives."
In 2011, Ryan Gosling and Eva Mendes fell in love while playing love interests in The Place Beyond the Pines. In 2023, he told GQ, "I wasn't thinking about kids before I met her, but after I met Eva, I realized that I just didn't want to have kids without her. And there were moments on The Place Beyond the Pines where we were pretending to be a family, and I didn't really want it to be pretend anymore. I realized that this would be a life I would be really lucky to have."
The couple went on to welcome two daughters — Esmeralda in 2014 and Amanda in 2016. Eva largely took a step back from working to care for their family, while Ryan continued acting. In his 2017 Golden Globes acceptance speech, he said, "You don't get to be up here without standing on the shoulders of a mountain. While I was singing and dancing and playing piano … my lady was raising our daughter, pregnant with our second, and trying to help her brother fight his battle with cancer."
Eva and Ryan notoriously value their privacy. In a 2020 Instagram comment, she explained why she doesn't post more pictures of him, writing, "As far as Ryan, I'll only post flash backs of things that are already 'out there' (like pics from movies we did or stuff like that). My man and my kids are private. That's important to me so thanks for getting that. Have a beautiful day. Sending so much love!"
Since their privacy is so important to them, it was no surprise that they decided to keep their wedding a secret! In 2022, Eva subtly confirmed their marital status while appearing on the Australian show Today. She said, "Everyone is so welcoming here, and my husband, Ryan, is here, and we are having the best time."
In 1985, Tina Turner flew to Europe for a concert, and music exec Erwin Bach picked her up from the airport — and it was "love at first sight." In 2013, she told Oprah's Next Chapter, "He had the prettiest face. You could not miss it. It was like saying, 'Where did he come from?' He was really that good-looking. My heart went bu-bum. It means that a soul has met. My hands were shaking."
Afterward, she invited him to visit her in the US with a bold proposition: "When you come to LA, I want you to make love to me." She said, "He looked at me like he didn't believe what he was hearing."
Erwin visited Tina in Nashville before seeing her again in LA. In 1989, he popped the question. She said, "I said, 'I don't have an answer.' It wasn't yes, it wasn't no... Marriage says ownership. I didn't want that 'my' anything, anymore. I had enough of that."
In 1995, the couple moved to Zurich, and in 2009, Tina retired from music. Then, in 2013, they had a big wedding at their estate. Erwin was there for Tina in a big way when she got diagnosed with kidney cancer a few years later. In her 2018 memoir Tina Turner: My Love Story, she said, "He said he didn't want another woman, or another life. Then he shocked me. He said he wanted to give me one of his kidneys." They remained together until her death in 2023.
Don Cheadle and Bridgid Coulter met on the set of the 1997 drama Rosewood. At the time, they were both actors, but she stepped away from acting because they agreed one of them would always stay home with their kids, Tai and Imani. While Don was away working, Bridgid would rearrange the furniture. Once, when he got home, he asked, "Is there going to be a month when I return home, and this is just how our furniture lives?" Alongside her friends' admiration for her design prowess, his question inspired her to pursue a new career in interior design.
In 2021, they had an intimate wedding at home. Don told Entertainment Tonight, "It was just beautiful. It was just for us in our backyard, our two kids. It was for us. It was special."
Addressing why they waited 28 years to wed, he said, "Our accountant proposed to both of us, and he showed us the numbers, and we said, 'Yeah, we should probably do it.' ...It came up a lot of times. But every time, we were like, 'But we're already together?' He's like, 'Yeah, but this is a better reason to be together.' Really, it's because our accountant proposed to us. I wish there were some big, sweet, romantic story, but the romance happened, you know, the first year."
And Bridgid joked, "You've got to make sure. I wasn't sure. Now, I think I'm almost sure."
Josh Hartnett and Tamsin Egerton met while filming The Lovers in 2011. In 2024, he told Interview magazine, "[We met in] the most Hollywood way imaginable. We played husband and wife in the worst movie either of us have ever made. No offense to the director; it'll remain nameless. It just got lost in post-production. We were shooting here in London, and both had significant others, and both realized that wasn't going to work because we really liked each other. So I broke up with my girlfriend, she broke up with her boyfriend, and then after we stopped filming, we started to date."
He continued, "But I was living in New York and she was living in London, so we went on a few vacations together. Then she came out to the States, and we went on a long road trip, where she met my parents, and it kept going. And then she kept staying with me, and I kept staying with her. We were living a lot of the time between houses together, and then she got pregnant, and then we got married."
Josh also shared that they "were engaged when she got pregnant." The couple welcomed three children before getting married — a daughter in 2015, and two more children in 2017 and 2019. They lived between the US and the UK (her home country) for years but spent lockdown in the UK. Then, when they were expecting their third child, they decided to stay in her hometown of Hampshire for good.
Tasmin and Josh got married in November 2021, but they kept it private until March 2022. Then, in 2024, they welcomed their fourth child together. Because Josh is in the UK on a marriage visa, he can only work out of the country for 180 days a year, giving him time to film one movie. He's perfectly happy with that because it gives him more time with his family.
RuPaul and Georges LeBar met on a night out at the NYC club Limelight in 1994. In 2017, RuPaul told Entertainment Tonight, "Literally, on the dance floor at Limelight. He was dancing like a crazed person. I went over and said, 'What are you doing?' You know, and that was that. Yeah, he's a rancher. He has a ranch in Wyoming. A very large ranch."
The couple decided to get married after the 2016 presidential election. RuPaul said, "What's happening politically right now, you know, you never know what could turn around at this point. Who thought that this would happen, what's happening in Washington right now. We are devoted to each other. We don't stand on ceremony. We thought, 'We don't have to get married.' But then, in light of what's happening currently in the world today, what's happening in Washington, we thought, 'You know what? Let's do it. Let's just do it, because there's too much at stake with our businesses' ...So, that's why we did it."
So, in 2017 — on their 23rd anniversary as a couple! — they had an intimate wedding at the LA home. RuPaul said, "He works the ranch, I work Hollywood, and we meet up in fabulous places. You know, he needs breaks from time to time, because it's a very different life. So, we plan little getaways once a month, you know? New York or Maui or San Francisco or Vegas. We do that. It works [for us]. This concept of marriage that we were raised with is so different from the real style of relationships that linger for years and years... It takes — it's different. There's sickness and in health, and rich and poor. It takes a real commitment to be able to stick with someone no matter what, and see them as their authentic self … it's real life."
In 2001, Amy Adams and Darren Le Gallo met in an acting class, but they were just friends for about a year. In 2008, she told Vanity Fair, "I had another boyfriend, and Darren was dating some girl. I did scenes with him, and I liked him and thought he was really sweet... I was really focused on the classes — he was a little scared of me."
However, over one life-changing weekend, they costarred in the short film Pennies. Amy said, "I got to know him outside of class, and I just found him to be such a genuine, caring person. And assertive! He demanded that we go out on a date. He said, 'I know you're getting over this [other] guy, but I'm taking you out on Wednesday.' I think that was it exactly. And I was like, 'And so you are!' That was six years ago."
In 2008, they got engaged, with People reporting they planned to tie the knot the following year. However, the couple took their time getting down the aisle. They welcomed their daughter, Aviana, in 2010. Five years later, Amy and Dan — who'd been together for 14 years at that point — got married in a small ceremony at their friend's house.
In 2017, Amy told E! News, "I avoided getting married for a really long time because I don't like people looking at me... I don't like to be the center of attention. When I'm promoting a film, I can sort of be there for the film, and I can be there for the director. But when it's a just a night like tonight [an awards show where she was honored], it becomes very singular."
Madam Secretary costars and onscreen spouses Téa Leoni and Tim Daly quietly started dating in the summer of 2014. About a year later, their costar Geoffrey Arend told People, "I heard a rumor about it, and everyone was like, 'No, no way!' And I'm like, 'Maybe.' ...Nobody really knew. You don't want to go to your boss and be like, 'Hey, so who are you dating?' So now I think we're all really protective."
In July 2025, they tied the knot in a private ceremony with their families.
In the '80s, George Takei decided to join Frontrunners, a gay running club, where he met speedy and "dashingly good-looking" Brad Takei (née Altman). After making the first move, George got Brad to do marathon training with him. By 1985, they were officially a couple, but George wasn't publicly out because he feared how it would affect his career. In 2020, Brad told Variety, "I was never identified publicly as George's boyfriend or partner."
However, after 20 years with Brad, George made the decision to publicly come out as gay and share his relationship with the world.
In 2008, same-sex marriage was briefly legalized in California for the first time, so they decided to tie the knot at the Japanese American National Museum in LA. George's Star Trek costars Walter Koenig and Nichelle Nichols served as the best man and the best woman. George told Variety, "She said, 'If Walter can be the best man, why can't I be the best lady?' We wanted to reflect diversity in our wedding, and that's what I remember — the powerful diversity."
In 1971, Lily Tomlin saw Jane Wagner's teleplay J.T., then reached out in hopes of writing together. In 2020, Lily told Variety, "A friend brought her to my hotel room, and I tell you, in two minutes, I fell in love with her. She had on hot pants, stretchy boots that went up to her knee, and a little backpack. I don't know what it was, but I was in love."
The next day, Lily had to fly to Chicago for a performance, but immediately after, she returned to New York, where Jane was. She continued, "I called Jane immediately, and I said, 'Look, I don't have much time, but I have to see you.' She agreed to see me, and we had our first date."
Same-sex marriage finally became legal in California in 2013, so, after 42 years together, Lily and Jane had a private wedding in LA.
In 2014, Robin Thicke met April Love Geary at a Labor Day party, but he was still married to his first wife at the time. However, Robin and April later reconnected at a nightclub and started dating. They made their red carpet debut at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival.
In 2018, they welcomed their first child together, Mia. Then, on Christmas Eve, they announced their engagement. On Instagram, April wrote, "YES YES 1000x YES 😭😭💍"
Over the next few years, they grew their family, welcoming two more kids — Lola in 2019 and Luca in 2020. Four years later, Robin told People, "Wedding plans are a priority. We're looking at 2024, and we're very excited... She's really the most amazing woman a man could ask for."
Their wedding plans finally came to fruition in 2025. Robin proposed to April for the second time, and one week later, they tied the knot in a celebrity-filled ceremony in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.
Joy Behar and Steve Janowitz started dating in 1982. On a 2020 episode of The View, she recalled, "I don't know if you know this about me, but I met my husband at a semi-nudist colony. It's true. He was naked; I was not. Because for a man to see me naked, I have to be in his will." However, she didn't speak to him until a movie night event later that evening, when they were both wearing clothes.
In 2009, they were engaged, but then Joy got "cold feet" and called it off. However, two years later, they tied the knot in NYC. In part, Joy decided she wanted to get married when same-sex marriage was legalized in New York. But that wasn't the only thing that changed her mind. She told Rachel Ray, "I waited until all the parents were dead. So I have no in-laws at all. He has none, and I have none. 'Cause marriage is mostly about in-laws, I find. They always want you to visit them and come for lasagna."
And finally, after her first husband's death in 1998, Bo Derek "didn't expect to end up with anyone again." However, after five years had passed, she met John Corbett, who needed a date for his friend's Oscars party. In 2015, John told Today, "I said, 'I'm not dating anyone,' and [the friend] said, 'I'll get you a date, Corbett!' And he set me up with Bo."
In 2020, Bo told Fox News, "It was just an attraction, a comfort. He makes me laugh all the time. He's full of life, full of joy. I became attracted to him, and I still am. We take things day by day, and I think we are still there."
For a long time, marriage didn't feel important to them. She said, "I think when you're beginning a young family and you're going to have children and set up this new family tree branch, it's obviously a wonderful commitment, and it's meaningful. But for us in our lives, it hasn't been yet.'
However, the couple decided to get married over the holidays in 2020 — and they kept it secret from the public for almost a year! In 2021, John told The Talk, "We're pretty private people. We didn't make an announcement. All our friends and family knew, but this is the first time either one of us has said anything publicly about it, because, really, we haven't had an opportunity. So, [co-host Jerry O'Connell] you're my buddy, and now I guess I'm telling all of America, or the world... After 20 years we decided to get married. We didn't want 2020 to be that thing that everybody looks back at and hated. We thought, 'Well, let's get one nice thing out of it.'"
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