Famous Long-Lasting Couples Who Never Wed

Although Hollywood may be known for short-lived relationships, these long-lasting couples have famously made things work — without tying the knot.

Famous Long-Lasting Couples Who Never Wed

In today’s celebrity culture, love can be awfully short-lived. Sometimes, it seems like Hollywood couples meet, go out, get married and break up quicker than it takes the coffee creamer in your fridge to expire. Of course, the prickly nature of fame is largely to blame. According to psychologist Donna Rockwell, celebrities are “so used to everyone looking at them, everybody coming to them, everybody giving to them, they forget how to turn around and give it back.”

So, it turns out there are downsides to being universally adored!

That said, it’s nothing less than shocking to discover that a celeb couple has been together for multiple years, much less without being married. Of course, getting legally hitched isn’t the only way to have a long-lasting romantic partnership. And here are just a few celeb couples throughout Hollywood’s history who famously proved this point.

Maya Rudolph and Paul Thomas Anderson

Length of Relationship: 19 Years

Though Maya Rudolph and Paul Thomas Anderson (PTA) may seem like they’re from two different (albeit equally accomplished) worlds — Maya, of course, is a former SNL cast member and all-around comedic genius, while Paul is a lauded film director and cinematic visionary — something’s clearly working for them. They have, after all, remained happily unmarried for 19 years.

PTA and Maya have four kids together with four of the cutest names imaginable: Jack, Pearl Minnie, Lucille and Minnie Ida. The two are also famously private, rarely discussing each other in interviews.

Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell

Length of Relationship: 37 Years

Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn are pretty much the patron saints of celebrity couples who never married. Each a beloved movie star in their own right, the longtime Hollywood golden couple has been together for more than 35 years, and their blended family includes four adult children: actors Oliver Hudson and Kate Hudson, Boston Russell and Wyatt Russell.

Though their non-traditional lifestyle has been undoubtedly successful, their relationship has reportedly endured multiple counts of infidelity, with Hawn telling “People” magazine that monogamy is “a very tough order”. (You can say that again, Goldie!)

Sara Switzer and Sandra Bernhard

Length of Relationship: 20-Plus Years

Comedian Sandra Bernhard (probably best known for her role on “Roseanne”) has been with her partner, writer and former magazine editor Sara Switzer for more than 20 years, though they’ve never felt the itch to get betrothed.

Their daughter, Cicely Yasin Bernhard, was born in 1998, and the couple currently shares a home in New York.

Vin Diesel and Paloma Jimenez

Length of Relationship: 13 Years

Actor Vin Diesel started dating Mexican model Paloma Jimenez rather privately in 2007. Although they’ve never wed, they seem content as partners.

They have three children together, including a daughter, Pauline, named after the late, Paul Walker, who Diesel starred with in the “Fast and the Furious” films.

Jason Statham and Rosie Huntington-Whiteley

Length of Relationship: 10 Years

Action star Jason Statham and fiance, model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, met on the set of “Transformers” and started dating in 2010. With a 20-year age difference between them, the couple got engaged in 2016. However, Huntington-Whiteley recently told Harper’s Bazaar that they still have no plans to get married anytime soon.

They welcomed their baby boy, Jack, in June 2017.

Oprah Winfrey and Stedman Graham

Length of Relationship: 34 Years

Ah, Oprah and Stedman! These two have been together for so long that it’s easy to forget they’ve never tied the knot. In fact, it's quite the opposite. Despite having been engaged since 1992 (and together since 1986), in 2017, Oprah revealed the true reason why they’ve never felt the need to get married, to “Vogue.”

“We would not have stayed together because marriage requires a different way of being in this world,” she said. “His interpretation of what it means to be a husband and what it would mean for me to be a wife would have been pretty traditional, and I would not have been able to fit into that.”

Ryan Gosling and Eva Mendes

Length of Relationship: 9 Years

Perhaps the most genetically gifted duo on the planet, Hollywood actors Ryan Gosling and Eva Mendes have been together since 2011 but are in no rush to get to the altar. They have two daughters, Esmeralda Amada and Amada Lee, and are known for being super secretive about their partnership, rarely making red carpet appearances together and often flat-out refusing to talk about one another.

According to “People,” Gosling loves how “fiercely independent” Mendes is, though it can also be “challenging.”

Deborah Eisenberg and Wallace Shawn

Length of Relationship: 40-Plus Years

Acclaimed short story writer, actor and teacher Deborah Eisenberg and actor and playwright Wallace Shawn have been together for more than 40 years, and their combined literary prowess is the stuff of legend at this point. Deborah and “Wally,” as she’s prone to calling him in interviews, also genuinely seem to still be head-over-heels in love (and what’s more, genuinely interested in one another) after all this time.

Eisenberg told the “Houston Chronicle” that Shawn has a “certifiably great brain” and is “the most wonderful and generous person.”

Tilda Swinton and Sandro Kopp

Length of Relationship: 16 Years

Actress Tilda Swinton has been with her partner, German artist Sandro Kopp, since 2004. The two met on the set of “The Chronicles of Narnia,” when she played the White Witch and he played a centaur.

Swinton was previously married to John Byrne, with whom she has two children. At the beginning of her and Kopp’s relationship, Swinton was still married to Byrne and openly dated Kopp. The two got a lot of flack from the media, as Kopp would sometimes come to live in the family’s Scotland home, Harper’s Bazaar reported in 2009. While Swinton is no longer with Byrne, she says that the two remain close friends.

John Corbett and Bo Derek

Length of Relationship: 18 Years

Everybody’s favorite “Sex and the City” boyfriend, John Corbett, and actress and model Bo Derek (best known for her role in the film “10”) have never been married, but have spent the last 18 years as a couple.

According to “Closer Weekly,” the pair recently redecorated their 10.5-acre ranch in Santa Ynez, Calif., with Derek chiming in that, since the couple travels so much, “our favorite vacation place is home.” Home is where the heart is, indeed!

Lauren Graham and Peter Krause

Length of Relationship: 10 Years

Cutie-pie lovebirds Lauren Graham and Peter Krause rarely walk the red carpet or are seen publicly together, even though they’ve been dating since 2010.

The two played brother and sister on the beloved family drama series “Parenthood,” but Graham is perhaps best known her for her role as Lorelai Gilmore on “Gilmore Girls” and Peter Krause is currently starring as Bobby Nash on “9-1-1.”

Sam Rockwell and Leslie Bibb

Length of Relationship: 13 Years

Oscar-winning actor Sam Rockwell (for “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri”) and “Iron Man” star Leslie Bibb have been together for over a decade without tying the knot.

Our favorite Rockwell-Bibb cute couple moment? When he wore a pair of custom “Leslie Bibb” cufflinks to the Oscars in 2018.

Krysten Ritter and Adam Granduciel

Length of Relationship: 6 Years

“Jessica Jones” star Krysten Ritter and The War on Drugs’ frontman Adam Granduciel have been dating since 2014, and the couple welcomed a baby boy in August 2019.

Ritter has since taken to her Instagram to post-pregnancy selfies, plus a snapshot of the happy couple with the caption, “Happy bday to the coolest dude I know. Love you, man. @thewarondrugs” — awwww!

Evangeline Lilly and Norman Kali

Length of Relationship: 10 Years

Evangeline Lilly, who first rose to fame on the series “Lost,” has been with her current boyfriend, Norman Kali, since meeting on the show in 2010. Kali was working as a production assistant. The couple has two children together but has no plans on getting married.

The actress was previously married to ice hockey player Murray Hone, and has said that, even though she is very happy in her current relationship, she doesn’t feel the need to get married again.

Rose Byrne and Bobby Cannavale

Length of Relationship: 8 Years

Longtime partners Rose Byrne and Bobby Cannavale have two children together, and the actors frequently show up on screen together, as well as in films like “Annie,” “Adult Beginners” and “Spy.”

You know what they say: The couple that acts together … well, rarely stays together, but we’ll admit that it seems to be working out for these two!

Shakira and Gerard Pique

Length of Relationship: 9 Years

Famed singer Shakira and soccer star Gerard Pique have been together since 2011 and have two children together, with no apparent plans to wed.

Considering they’ve created what’s easily one of the cutest families we’ve ever laid eyes on, we’d say these two aren’t missing much by refusing to take the plunge.

Dwayne Johnson and Lauren Hashian

Length of Relationship: 13 Years

Dwayne Johnson, aka The Rock, met Singer-Songwriter and Music Producer Lauren Hashian (daughter of Boston Drummer Sib Hashian) in 2006 when filming “The Game Plan.” When they met, Johnson was married to Producer and Body Builder Dany Garcia. The two split in 2007, and he began dating Hashian soon after.

The interesting part? Garcia asked if she could be Johnson’s manager in 2008 and has held the position ever since. Johnson and Garcia are still going strong and have two daughters together.

Paul Dano and Zoe Kazan

Length of Relationship: 13 Years

Acting, screenwriting, directing: What can’t longtime couple Zoe Kazan and Paul Dano do? The two had met as actors in the off-Broadway play "Things We Want" and have supported each other ever since.

The “Wildlife” creators also had a “secret baby” together in August 2018, according to “Vanity Fair,” which Dano confirmed when he went on “The Tonight Show,” saying, “I’m so tired, and I’m so in love.”

Sarah Paulson and Holland Taylor

Length of Relationship: 5 Years

The media had a field day when these two got together, due to their age difference and same-sex coupledom (never mind that, when we’re talking about a heterosexual couple and the man is older, it’s not even noteworthy). Both actresses, Holland is 75 and Paulson is 43, and they’ve been together since at least 2015.

Paulson has no time for the haters, though. She recently told “Modern Luxury” magazine, “If anyone wants to spend any time thinking I’m strange for loving the most spectacular person on the planet, then that’s their problem. I’m doing just fine.” Bam!

Ricky Gervais and Jane Fallon

Length of Relationship: 36 Years

Together since 1984, comedian Ricky Gervais and author Jane Fallon are truly a lesson in unwedded bliss. Gervais recently even joked that he “would fall apart” without Fallon, citing an incident in which Fallon went to visit her mother, and he couldn’t figure out how to operate the boiler: “So I was on the couch under a blanket with the cat listening to internet radio for two nights because I couldn’t get the telly working, and it was like, honestly, it was like 'Castaway!'”

Something tells us there’s never a dull moment with these two.

Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez

Length of Relationship: 19 Years

The ultra-chic (and, we hate to objectify these dudes, but ridiculously good-looking) duo behind famed brand Proenza Schouler have known each other since their junior year of college at Parsons School of Design, according to the “Hollywood Reporter.”

In fact, Proenza Schouler began as their collaborative senior thesis (the collection was named after their mother’s maiden names) and was later bought, in its entirety, by Barney’s. Apparently, it’s possible to be famous, gorgeous, talented and in love. We kind of love (hate) these two.

Anna Kournikova and Enrique Iglesias

Length of Relationship: 19 Years

The famous tennis player met Iglesias on the set of his music video for the song “Escape” in 2001. The two have been together ever since but remain extremely private — so much so that there have been rumors that they have been married and even divorced in that time.

Iglesias set the record straight, however, telling E! News that the two have never been married and are still, in fact, together. In December 2017, the two welcomed their twins: Nicholas and Lucy. And then they welcomed a baby girl in February 2020.

Matthew Rhys and Keri Russell

Length of Relationship: 6 Years

Their relationship was the emotional core of their fake lives on FX’s hit spy drama “The Americans,” and as it turns out, it’s the emotional core of their real lives, too!

Keri Russell and Matthew Rhys have been together since at least 2014 (when they officially announced they were a couple), and they have a son together, Sam (how, um, patriotic!) — and zero plans to walk down the aisle anytime soon.

Robin Roberts and Amber Laign

Length of Relationship: 15 Years

"Good Morning America" anchor Robin Roberts celebrated 15 years with her long-time partner Robert Laign in July 2020.

Laign shared this sentiment on Instagram: " "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. You have the kindest heart and most beautiful soul than anyone I know. You have shown me time and time again to stay humble and to always treat others with the utmost respect, as you never know what one might be going through. Beautiful ... absolutely beautiful. I love you with all my heart ... boo boo. Happy 15th Anniversary!!"

Gwendoline Christie and Giles Deacon

Length of Relationship: 7 Years

Gwendoline Christie, the 40-year-old actress who’s known for her role as Brienne in “Game of Thrones,” has been dating British fashion designer Giles Deacon since 2013. He’s most famous for designing the wedding dress of Pippa Middleton.

Christie, a model herself, has collaborated with Deacon on several outfits she has worn for various red-carpet events.

Helena Bonham Carter and Tim Burton

Length of Relationship: 13 Years

Known as Hollywood’s most eccentric power couple, film director Tim Burton and British actress Helena Bonham Carter were together for 13 years and had two children — not to mention worked on six films together, including “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” “Big Fish” and “Alice in Wonderland” — before splitting up a few years ago.

Interestingly, not only did the couple never marry, they also never cohabited, choosing instead to live in adjoining homes in London.

Brie Larson and Alex Greenwald

Length of Relationship: 6 Years

Oscar-nominated actress Brie Larson and Phantom Planet lead singer Alex Greenwald started dating in 2013 before getting engaged in May 2016. They broke off their engagement in 2019, yet they "still remain close," according to several reports.

Ah, life in Hollywood!

Katie Holmes and Jamie Foxx

Length of Relationship: 6 Years

Secretive pair Katie Holmes and Jamie Foxx were rumored to have been dating since 2013 before calling it quits in 2019.

They apparently went (quite literally) to the ends of the Earth to protect their romance, with “Harper’s Bazaar” reporting on their private jet excursions to Paris, Mexico, Malibu and everywhere in between.

Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn

Length of Relationship: 26 Years

The fabled romance between iconic Hollywood screen stars Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn lasted for more than 25 years. The two met on the set of the 1942 film “Woman of the Year” and proceeded to start a hot and heavy relationship. The only problem? Scandalously, Tracy was married to Louise Treadwell at the time — and he never divorced her.

This didn’t deter the lovers, however, from carrying out a clandestine romance over the next 26 years until Tracy’s death. However, the affair was not without consequence: Hepburn was barred from attending Tracy’s funeral.

Dick Van Dyke and Michelle Triola Marvin

Length of Relationship: 33 Years

Dick Van Dyke has been married twice, but he never married his long-time partner, Actress Michelle Triola Marvin. Van Dyke began dating Triola Marvin in 1976, long before his divorce from his wife, Margie Willett, in 1984. Keep in mind, though, that Van Dyke and Willet had been separated for a long time.

Van Dyke and Triola Marvin were together until her death in 2009. That didn’t stop him from remarrying though. On Feb. 29, 2012, at the age of 86, he married 40-year-old Make-Up Artist Arlene Silver, and the two are still together.

Johnny Depp and Vanessa Paradis

Length of Relationship: 14 Years

Although they’re not together anymore, actor Johnny Depp and French model and singer Vanessa Paradis were a couple for 14 years without getting hitched. They have two children, Lily-Rose and Jack, and their breakup was said to have been mighty painful.

Depp told “Rolling Stone” that the split “wasn’t easy” on him, Paradis or the kids. (After all, 14 years is basically 75 years in Hollywood!)

Bradley Cooper and Irina Shayk

Length of Relationship: 4 Years

Actor Bradley Cooper and model Irina Shayk were happily together for four years before their split in June 2019. The couple was first spotted out together in 2015. The two have a baby girl, who was born in March 2017.

Of course, rumors that Lady Gaga was the reason for the split were circling in 2019, but that remains to be proven right. While Cooper and Shayk never got married, she told Cosmopolitan that she does believe in marriage. Maybe Cooper just wasn't the right one?

Jessica Lange and Sam Shepard

Length of Relationship: 27 Years

Acclaimed playwright and actor Sam Shepard and beloved actress Jessica Lange had one of the most famous non-legally binding love affairs in Hollywood history. The two were together for almost three decades and had two children, Hannah and Samuel. They did end up separating in late 2009, eight years before Shepard passed away in 2017.

At one point during the course of their relationship, Shepard told “The Guardian” that he and Lange were “an incredible match,” and she was “the only woman I could live with,” although their relationship was “not without fireworks.”

Naomi Watts and Liev Schreiber

Length of Relationship: 11 Years

Before their breakup, actors Liev Schreiber and Naomi Watts were together for a solid 11 years. The couple share two sons, and most hearteningly, they’ve been able to remain friendly exes since their split

Schreiber told “People” magazine that keeping a mutual friendship was his top priority, and that they’ll “always be partners with these kids.”

Serge Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin

Length of Relationship: 12 Years

France’s most famous power couple, the English-born actress and singer Jane Birkin and prolific (and ultra-provocative) singer-songwriter Serge Gainsbourg never married, although they were the picture of romance throughout the ’60s and ’70s. Their relationship is widely considered to be one of the great romances of the 20th century, so it’s safe to say that not tying the knot certainly worked in their favor.

Though Serge was 20 years older than Jane, their relationship lasted for over a dozen years, and their only daughter, Charlotte Gainsbourg, is a famous singer and actress who’s best known for her work with the Danish film director Lars Von Trier (and has also never married her longtime partner, director Yvan Attal).

Jon Hamm and Jennifer Westfeldt

Length of Relationship: 18 Years

Though they’re no longer together, Jon Hamm and Jennifer Westfeldt were a couple for a staggering 18 years before calling it quits. The “Mad Men” star and indie actress broke up shortly after Hamm’s brief stint in rehab for alcohol abuse.

Hamm was pretty broken up about the split when it happened, telling “InStyle,” “It’s hard. It’s hard to be single after being together for a long time. It’s really hard. It sucks.”

Diane Kruger and Joshua Jackson

Length of Relationship: 10 Years

Actors Joshua Jackson and Diane Kruger may have ended their decade-long relationship in 2016 — but hey, 10 years is like 50 years in Hollywood, right?

These two former lovebirds remained friendly after the break-up, though, with Jackson going so far as to Insta-congratulate Kruger on her Best Actress win at Cannes.

Hugh Grant and Elizabeth Hurley

Length of Relationship: 13 Years

Though they’re no longer together, actor Hugh Grant and actress-model-designer Elizabeth Hurley were one of Hollywood’s most famous unmarried golden couples for 13 years.

Together, they weathered one of the biggest celeb scandals of their time (in 1995, Grant was caught engaging in a “lewd act” with a “known prostitute”). But, judging from Hurley’s Instagram, they’ve clearly since reconciled.

Tim Robbins and Susan Sarandon

Length of Relationship: 21 Years

One of Hollywood’s favorite long-time couples who had never wed shocked the masses when they announced they were separating in 2009. The two met on the set of “Bull Durham” in 1988 and have two sons together, Jack and Miles.

Both Sarandon and Robbins have gone on record saying the split was due to a mid-life crisis that Robbins was facing.

Jennifer Hudson and David Otunga

Length of Relationship: 9 Years

Jennifer Hudson has actually been in two long-term relationships that didn’t turn into marriage. Her first was with James Payton, who she began dating in 1999 when she was 18. The two separated in late 2007, and she quickly became engaged to Professional Wrestler David Otunga in September 2008.

Despite being engaged, the two never married and eventually split in November 2017. They do, however, share one son together.

Kourtney Kardashian and Scott Disick

Length of Relationship: 9 Years

This reality TV duo’s relationship was in the spotlight from the beginning. They met in 2006 through a friend at a house party in Mexico. Their on-again, off-again relationship was filmed throughout the show, “Keeping Up With the Kardashians.”

During their relationship, the two had three children together.

Jacqueline Bisset and Emin Bostepe

Length of Relationship: 11 Years (Plus One)

Actress Jacqueline Bisset of “Bullitt” fame has never been married, despite having five long-term relationships throughout her life. The longest was with Martial Arts Instructor Emin Boztepe from 1994 to 2005, and then again from 2007 to 2008.