Melanie Lynskey and Jason Ritter's Relationship Timeline

Mar. 15, 2025

Photo: David Livingston/Getty

Melanie LynskeyandJason Ritterare Hollywood couple goals.

The duo first met while costarring in the dramedyThe Big Askin 2013. They started dating shortly after and went on to star in two more movies together — the 2014 rom-comWe’ll Never Have Parisand 2016’sThe Intervention.

Lynskey and Ritterwelcomed a daughterin 2018 and tied the knot in 2020 ina private ceremonyon their front porch.

The couple are very supportive of each other’s respective acting careers — and sometimes that means “genuinely sacrificing” for the other.

“The last few years we’ve had this role of like, whoever’s job makes the most sense, whether it’s the most exciting career-wise or it’s more money, we would prioritize the one that was going to help move the person’s career forward,” Lynskey explained to PEOPLE in April 2024.

She continued: “I’m so, so, so grateful to [Jason]. I think a lot of men don’t have that kind of self-esteem and that respect for their partner. I’m grateful that I have someone who does.”

From their first film together to tying the knot, here’s everything to know about Melanie Lynskey and Jason Ritter’s relationship.

2013: Melanie Lynskey and Jason Ritter star inThe Big Ask

Amy Graves/Getty

Lynskey and Ritter first met in 2013 while filmingThe Big Ask. The film also starsGillian Jacobs,Zachary Knighton,David Krumholtzand Ahna O’Reilly.

While the actors did not play a couple in the movie, it did spark their off-screen romance, and they starteddating shortly after. Later that year,they attendedthe Gold Coast International Film Festival together to promote the movie along with producer Karina Miller.

2014: Melanie Lynskey and Jason Ritter join forces again forWe’ll Never Have Paris

The following year, Ritter and Lynskey worked together again, this time in the romantic comedyWe’ll Never Have ParisalongsideSimon Helberg,Zachary QuintoandMaggie Grace. Despite their real-life romance, the pair didn’t portray love interests — Ritter was cast as Lynskey’s brother in the film.

March 10, 2014: Melanie Lynskey and Jason Ritter make their red carpet debut

Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic

In March 2014, Ritter and Lynskey attended the SXSW debut of their film,We’ll Never Have Paris, along with the rest of the cast. The actors were photographed on the red carpet alongside Grace, Helberg and co-director Jocelyn Towne.

Lynskey and Ritter then appeared together on the red carpet in January 2015 at the premiere of HBO’sTogetherness,in which Lynskey starred. The event marked one of the first times they walked a red carpet as a couple.

2016: Melanie Lynskey and Jason Ritter star inThe Intervention

Lynskey and Ritter worked together for the third time on the 2016 comedy,The Intervention.This time, Lynskey and Ritter were paired up as a couple.

Lynskeyspoke about working with Ritteron the film during a 2016 interview with ScreenCrush. “Well, it was really fun. We had done it before, that was the movie we had met each other on. It was fun, it was just easy. We get along really well,” she said. “He is just such a sweet, easygoing person. It was nice, he is very easy to be around. He issucha good actor.”

February 16, 2017: Melanie Lynskey announces her engagement to Jason Ritter

A few days later, Lynskey announced thatshe and Ritter were engagedduring an appearance onHollywood Today Live.

“Now he’s my fiancé,” she said during the interview. “Yes, I know, I’m announcing it.”

Joe Scarnici/Getty

Lynskey and Ritterwelcomed a daughterin December 2018, though the news of the pair’s first child wasn’t announced until the following month

Lynskey thenconfirmed the birth of their daughterherself on Twitter, writing, “We feel lucky to have been able to have our news just be for friends and family for a while, but I guess the story got out, so! Yes! @JasonRitter and I had a daughter in December.” She added, “We love her so much; she’s perfect. Thanks to everyone for your sweet messages.”

She then thanked the doctors and nurses at the Northside Hospital in Atlanta for bringing her little girl into the world.

October 2019: Jason Ritter opens up about parenthood

During aninterview onPEOPLE Nowfor his Netflix sci-fi showRaising Dion, Ritter discussed his newfound fatherhood.

“The best part about being a dad is just — I feel like she and I have a special connection where we sort of get in trouble together,” he said. “She’s a little adventurer. She wants to get into everything and try to climb things, and I’m, like, trying to help her.”

Spring 2020: Jason Ritter and Melanie Lynskey get married

Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty

In an interview with SiriusXM’s Jess Cagle in May 2022, Lynskey revealed thatshe and Ritter had gotten marriedin 2020 before she was leaving to go work onYellowjacketsin Canada.

“Honestly, I got married because someone was like, ‘Jason won’t get into Canada unless you’re married,’ which just wasn’t true. We were waiting until like after the [pandemic],” Lynskey explained.

She continued, “I was going to Canada forYellowjackets, and I was on the phone with somebody, and they said, ‘Oh, he won’t be allowed in.’ And I was like, ‘We have a child. What? I can’t leave for six months.’ So, I was like, ‘We have to get married tomorrow.’ "

The couple then quickly tied the knot in a small wedding at their home.

“We got married on our front porch of our little rental house in Atlanta. A nice lady came and married us. We had two friends there.Ali AhnandWilliam Jackson Harper… They brought a cake and flowers and everything we needed. It was actually a very fun wedding day, but it didn’t need to happen. He could totally have gotten into Canada,” added Lynskey.

January 29, 2022: Jason Ritter defends Melanie Lynskey against body shamers

After the release and widespread success ofYellowjackets, Lynskey opened up on social media about thebody shaming she had been experiencing online. “Most egregious are the ‘I care about her health!!’ people,” Lynskey wrote on Twitter. “B— you don’t see me on my Peleton! [sic] You don’t see me running through the park with my child. Skinny does not always equal healthy.”

February 17, 2022: Melanie Lynskey wishes Jason Ritter a happy birthday

In honor of Ritter’s 42nd birthday, Lynskeyshared a sweet birthday tributeon Instagram.

“Happy birthday, beautiful husband. Thank you for making me cry with laughter daily. Thank you for giving our little daughter the safest, most joyful, most loving childhood,” she wrote alongside a photo of Ritter holding their daughter up in the air. “You are so fun. You are so kind, to everyone, even mean people. You are just the best person. And you are very very very very handsome and I love you with all my heart @jason_ritter.”

March 13, 2022: Melanie Lynskey gives Jason Ritter an awards show shoutout

Emma McIntyre/Getty

WhenLynskey won the 2022 Critics' Choice Awardfor best actress in a drama series forYellowjackets, she thanked Ritter in her acceptance speech, calling him the “love of my life” and “the greatest support.”

Ritter also celebrated the win, posting a photo of Lynskey on the red carpet captioned, “I am sorry to do this and she will be embarrassed that I did this but my GOODNESS what an absolyute beaut my wife is!!!”

He continued, “Ok I’m sorry but I mean LOOK at this human being who is also the best person I know.”

March 27, 2022: Melanie Lynskey and Jason Ritter attend the Oscars afterparties

Jerod Harris/Getty

In March 2022, Lynskey and Ritter attendedElton John’s annualAcademy Awardsviewing party, and then went to theVanity FairOscar Party. Lynskey posted photos from their big weekend on Instagram, including somebehind-the scenes-shots. “I’ve never felt more fancy,” she wrote, in part. “Look at my handsome husband.”

April 2022: Melanie Lynskey and Jason Ritter celebrate their anniversary

A month later, Lynskey and Ritter celebrated their third wedding anniversary. In honor of the milestone, Lynskey posteda sweet photofrom their intimate wedding ceremony featuring herself, Ritter, Ahn and Harper.

“Happy (belated) anniversary my love! Can you believe we fit our entire wedding party into one picture?? (Except our daughter and @missdana10) I love you so much sweet husband,” she wrote.

May 12, 2022: Jason Ritter makes an appearance on Melanie Lynskey’s miniseries

Michael Kovac/Getty

In May 2022, Lynskey starred in the Hulu limited seriesCandyalongsideJessica Biel. The true crime series is about Candy Montgomery (Biel), a woman who was accused of murdering her neighbor, Betty Gore (Lynskey), in 1980.

In the fourth episode, both Lynskey and Biel’s husbandsmade cameo appearancesas police officers.

In an interview withEntertainment Tonight,Biel explained that her husband,Justin Timberlake, became interested in playing the character of Deputy Steve Deffibaugh after he read a copy of the script. Ritter was then brought on when the series' co-creator, Robin Veith, saw a photo of him with a very ’80s mustache.

June 12, 2022: Melanie Lynskey says Jason Ritter is aYellowjacketssuperfan

While the couple has worked together on many projects, there is one project of Lynskey’s that Ritter hasn’t had the chance to work on but would love the opportunity to —Yellowjackets.

The actresstold PEOPLEthat her husband is the show’s biggest fan and “would lose his mind” for a chance to make a cameo on it.

“He would do anything, I think. He really would,” she said of Ritter. “I mean, I want them to cast whoever they want to cast. I’m not ever going to push my husband on them. But they should know he would do it in a second.”

July 12, 2022: Jason Ritter celebrates Melanie Lynskey’s Emmy nomination

Daniele Venturelli/WireImage

Lynskey was nominated for her first Emmy Award for her role inYellowjacketsin June 2022. Ritterexpressed his excitementabout the news on Twitter, writing, “Ahhhhh!!!!! Congratulations to the most incredible person through and through! I am so proud of you!! It has been so inspiring to watch you give one beautiful performance after another, you deserve every recognition that has come/is coming your way! Also I love you!”

In another tweet, the actor then jokingly clarified that he was talking about his wife. “This is for/about @melanielynskey i should clarify! I was too excited.”

August 9, 2022: Melanie Lynskey appears on the cover ofInStyleand talks about her relationship with Jason Ritter

ForInStyle’s cover story, Lynskey opened up about balancing motherhood with her skyrocketing career, and credited Ritter for making it possible. She told the publication that he turns down roles that aren’t “life changing” to support her work and spends more time with their daughter on the weekends when Lynskey needs some time to relax.

“I know balance is not usually like this and I’m lucky, but this should just be how it is,” she said, adding, “My husband has made a lot of sacrifices and not worked so the family can stay together.”

September 12, 2022: Melanie Lynskey says Jason Ritter called her Emmys dress “sexy”

Lynskey and Ritter attended theEmmy Awardson Sept. 12, with Ritter in a dapper black suit and Lynskey wearing a flowing green gown.

“Christian Sirianomade this dress,“Lynskey shared. “He came to my house and did a fitting with me. He’s the sweetest man alive, and I adore him. I feel like he made something that was for me, for my body. Like, I feel like a princess, because I have this princessy thing,” she said, showing off the long skirt.

TheYellowjacketsactress also mentioned her husband’s opinion of the dress, saying, “But I also do feel like a little bit of a bad bitch, honestly, because it’s so fitted under here, and my husband’s like, ‘That’s sexy!’ So, that’s what you want.”

December 20, 2022: Melanie Lynskey talks working with Jason Ritter on the set ofYellowjackets

Ritter willguest star in a single episode ofYellowjacketsseason 2. During an interview withVariety, Lynskey gushed about being on set with her husband.

“He’s such awonderful actor and a really nice person,” she said. “When I came back to work, everyone was like, ‘Your husband is the nicest person!’ It makes me look smart, like I chose a great partner.

Lynskey added: “He’s so good, and it’s really fun to get to work with somebody who is creative and interesting and does something different every take, which is what he does.”

March 16, 2023: Melanie Lynskey talks about Jason Ritter’s cameo onThe Last of Us

During an appearance onThe Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Lynskey revealed thatRitter made a cameoas a zombie-esque “clicker” onThe Last of Us.

“He was a stunt person. He trained with the stunt people, and he just did all these amazing stunts. It’s like his lifelong dream,” she told hostJimmy Fallon. “He got put in makeup and came out of the ground and was falling over and doing all these [flips].”

During the infected attack, Lynskey said she even got to fight Ritter. “I shot him once. Yeah. Why not?” she said, joking that the moment was “so romantic.”

March 29, 2023: Jason Ritter opens up about struggling with alcoholism during early stages of relationship with Melanie Lynskey

During a joint appearance onThe Drew Barrymore Show, Ritter and Lynskey opened up about the moment they knew they had found their person. For Ritter, however, his moment was “not as cute of a story as you would like to think” as he wasstruggling with alcoholismat the time.

“At a point, I knew how amazing she was, and I thought she would be incredible for someone who deserved her, basically,” he told Barrymore, choking up. Lynskey reached for his hand and began to tear up.

“And I didn’t feel like I was that person. I thought [I was] a little bit too crazy,” he continued. “So it was only after like maybe a year into not drinking where I started to go, ‘Oh, maybe I can promise some things to someone else. Maybe I can be this person.’ It’s been like a slow burn.”

He added: “I knew she was incredible. It was working on myself enough to feel like maybe I can be the one for her, too.”

Lynskey said of her husband, “He did so much work on himself. I’m so proud of him.”

May 16, 2023: Jason Ritter celebrates Melanie Lynskey’s 46th birthday

Ritter paid tribute to his wife onInstagramin honor of her birthday (and Mother’s Day two days prior).

“Melanie’s ability to read people and social situations is unparalleled. Her empathy extends beyond anyone’s I’ve ever met, and although I know that I am also passing down things to our daughter, (jumping off of things and being distracted among them), those Melanie intuitions I already see growing within her are invaluable,” he wrote alongside a few AI-generated images. “I am so grateful to be raising this little person with such an incredible partner.”

July 18, 2023: Melanie Lynskey says Jason Ritter re-proposes to her “all the time”

Frazer Harrison/Getty

During an interview for theShut Up Evan: The Newsletter, Lynskey admitted that Ritter’s initial marriage proposal “wasn’t great.”

She shared this shortly after Ritter popped into the conversation briefly and said: “Will you marry me (again)? Please get back to me as quickly as possible. Thank you. Bye!”

Lynskey went on to explain that it’s a “little inside joke” between the couple.

“The first time he proposed, it wasn’t great. So,he re-proposes all the timeto make up for it, which is really cute,” she said.

February 14, 2024: Melanie Lynskey and Jason Ritter celebrate Valentine’s Day

Melanie Lynskey/ Instagram

In honor of Valentine’s Day, Lynskey penned a sweet post about her husband on Instagram. She listed the things she was grateful to Ritter for, including “making me laugh out loud every day” and “being a real cutie.”

Ritter responded in his own post and said: “Thank you for loving me in such a way that you inspired me to strip myself of the mask I can sometimes wear out in the world.I love you forever, you’re it for me. Thank you for this happiness.”

October 22, 2024: Melanie Lynskey calls Jason Ritter a “true feminist”

Jason Ritter and Melanie Lynskey in 2024.Kayla Oaddams/WireImage

Kayla Oaddams/WireImage

While speaking to PEOPLE, Lynskey shared that balancing work and family is “tricky,” but much more doable thanks to Ritter.

“I have a great husband who really is atrue feminist. He does so much,” the actress said.

March 2, 2025: Jason Ritter joins fans in thirsting after Melanie Lynskey on social media

After fans shared photos of Lynskey in the sparkling red gown she wore to the 2025Vanity FairOscars party onX, one responded,asking, “can jason ritter fight?”

Hours later, Ritter responded with apostof his own, writing, “Yes I can fight.”

source: people.com