Julianne Hough's Dating History: From Ryan Seacrest to Brooks Laich

Mar. 15, 2025

Photo: Lester Cohen/WireImage ; Jason LaVeris/FilmMagic

Actress and dancerJulianne Houghis keeping her heart “open.”

The star has been engaged twice and married once. She’s also had several long-term relationships, including with country singerChuck WicksandAmerican IdolhostRyan Seacrest.

Even though she’s kept her dating life pretty private, Hough has been open about her sexuality. In a 2019 interview withWomen’s Health, Hough revealed that she told her then-husband, Brooks Laich, whom she married in 2017, thatshe wasn’t straight. “I [told him], ‘You know I’m not straight, right?’ And he was like, ‘I’m sorry, what?’ I was like, ‘I’m not. But I choose to be with you,’ " she recounted.

Hough and Laich separated in 2020 andfinalized their divorcein 2022 — but the dancer isn’t letting it get her down. In April 2022, Hough spoke to PEOPLE abouther Broadway debutand how she began embarking on a new chapter after her divorce.

“My heart is open,” she said. “I’m leading with love but not necessarily searching for anything. I’m focusing on the things that make me happy. I’m focusing on going to the flower shop and buying beautiful flowers to make my house feel great. And I’m focused on being the best version of myself. I’m excited to be in this state of openness.”

Here’s a look at Julianne Hough’s dating history.

Zack Wilson

In 2007, when she was 18 years old, Hough was engaged to Zack Wilson, a childhood friend from her hometown. In an interview withGlamour, Hough said, “When I first came to L.A. … I was engaged to someone else, a guy I knew from Utah who had served a Mormon mission.” Hough also grew up in theChurch of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

In May 2007, PEOPLE reported that the pair were postponing their August wedding. “[Zack and I] are still together,” Hough said at the time. “We just want [more time] before we get married. It’s all good!”

By November 2007, Hough and Wilson had split. Years later, she toldGlamour: “He was a great guy — I’d known him since I was 9. But I needed to figure myself out more, and so I moved to L.A. and we ended it.”

Wilson ended up marrying Hough’s childhood best friend. “It was a little weird when it happened, but they’re a great couple!” she said.

Chuck Wicks

Kevin Winter/ACM2009/Getty

Not long after splitting with Wilson, Hough moved on with country music star Chuck Wicks, whom she met while touring withBrad Paisleyin 2008. “He’s just a great guy!” Hough told PEOPLE that August. “He’s awesome and really, really talented. I’m having a great time getting to know him.”

Wicks joined Hough onDancing with the Starsas her celebrity partner in March 2009. “It has been so much fun and really hilarious to see Chuck try to dance,” Hough wrote on her MySpace celebrity blog. “Even thinking about it is funny! He is actually doing very well though. I was really surprised.”

Wicks acknowledged their split on the red carpet, tellingEntertainment Tonight, “We’re going to have a good time and we will address [the breakup] together, but right now we’re going to have a lot of fun.”

“Now, I just don’t even care. … It’s on you. You get past it,” he said. “I’ve seen her one time. I’ve seen her one time in 10 years.”

Dane Cook

Steve Granitz/WireImage ; Paul Drinkwater/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal/Getty

While Hough and comedianDane Cookwere never confirmed to be in an official relationship, the two did spend some time together. The pair were spotted at dinner in March 2010 after Hough attended Cook’s comedy show. A source told PEOPLE that after the show, Cook “kissed her, and they quickly left together.”

A few days later, they were spotted again in West Hollywood, California. Hough and Cook never commented on their relationship or talked about each other in public.

Ryan Seacrest

Todd Williamson/WireImage

Hough and Seacrest met when she went on his radio show with her then-boyfriend, Wicks. “The interview’s on YouTube, and I blush when I hear it because Ryan is hitting on me the entire time!” she recalled. “At the end, Ryan said something like, ‘You guys really have something special!’ And I thought to myself, ‘He’s so full of s— right now!’ When Chuck and I broke up, I wanted to be single. That lasted five months. Then Ryan and I went on a date.”

In November 2010, Hough gushed about Seacrest onThe Ellen DeGeneres Show.“He’s really romantic,” she said. “He’s not even in town and I got in my car and there were flowers everywhere.”

The actress echoed the sentiment in 2012, tellingParade: “I’m so lucky that I have a great relationship. I’m very blessed and I don’t take anything for granted. I think if you alienate people and just focus on your work then it just becomes lonely and it’s not fun anymore.”

Although there were engagement rumors swirling for most of their relationship, Hough and Seacrest broke up in March 2013. Sources told PEOPLE that their busy work schedules were to blame. In 2022, Seacrest interviewed Hough and her brother on his show, and they addressed the question of whether or not it felt awkward.

“There isnothing uncomfortable about itbecause we remained friends for years and still are,” Seacrest. Hough added that they still had “respect and love” for each other.

Ari Sandel

Foc Kan/WireImage ; Barry King/FilmMagic

Hough and Sandel never confirmed or spoke about their relationship.

Brooks Laich

Frazer Harrison/Getty

Despite living on different coasts (Laich was in Washington, D.C., and Hough was in L.A.), the pair started communicating regularly. “We talked on the phone and FaceTimed for two months before we physically met each other,” Laich later toldE! News. “We kind of knew it was going to happen,” Hough told the outlet of their first meeting.

By August 2015, theywere engaged. “I’m just feeling so happy and blessed every moment of every day,” Hough told PEOPLE. “My favorite thing about being engaged is just a sense of warmth and joy.”

Hough and Laichtied the knotin July 2017. She told PEOPLE that they “never stopped looking at each other” and she “couldn’t stop crying all weekend.”

In 2019, Hough opened up about the couple’sin vitro fertilization journeyto PEOPLE, saying, “The best part about being open [about IVF] is when you really don’t have anything to hide, it’s just liberating and free.”

In May 2020, the couple announced they wereending their relationship. In a joint statement to PEOPLE, they said: “We have lovingly and carefully taken the time we have needed to arrive at our decision to separate. We share an abundance of love and respect for one another and will continue to lead with our hearts from that place.” Theyfinalized their divorcein 2022.

Despite their divorce, Laich has remained close to the Hough family. In August 2023, he was agroomsman at Derek Hough’s weddingto Hayley Erbert.

“I feel like our relationship and our marriage was exactly right, and the end of it is right too,” Hough said on theArmchair Expertpodcast in August 2024. “We both have regretsthat it didn’t work out because I don’t think we had the maturity to come together.”

Charlie Wilson

In November 2021, Hough wasspotted kissingmodel Charlie Wilson in L.A. Just a few days later, a source told PEOPLE that Hough washaving fun with Wilson, but they weren’t necessarily romantic.

“Julianne has not been dating Charlie Wilson very long but seems happy and enjoying her single life,” the source said. “She is attracted to him, but it’s early and could just be a flirtation.”

source: people.com