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Renée Zellweger’s Boyfriend Ant Anstead Shares Rare Look at Their Romance in Anniversary Message
Renée Zellweger doesn't have any wedding plans in her diary at the moment.
After all, the Oscar winner's boyfriend of five years Ant Anstead said they aren't rushing down the aisle to get marry, despite the fact that he often calls her "the missus."
"I still believe in marriage, but right now we’re really happy," Anstead—who was previously married to Louise Storey from 2005 to 2017 and to Christina Haack from 2018 to 2021—said in an interview with The Telegraph published July 24. "We don’t need the pressure of a label."
Indeed, the notoriously private couple are enjoying their quiet life together, splitting time between California's Orange County and the English countryside in Hertfordshire, where Anstead has been building a house for his parents and restoring old cars.
"She's a very real person. She’s absolutely brilliant, the most grounded, humble person," the 47-year-old raved. "If there’s a car job to be done at home, I say, ‘We’re doing this together. Put your overalls on, let’s go.’”
And Zellweger's love of cars was what drew Anstead to her when they first crossed paths on a 2021 episode of his show Celebrity IOU: Joyride.
“Renée is a hands-on car girl," he shared. "She used a grinder to cut metal, she was welding, she was on the spanners.”
The Wheeler Dealers alum continued, "A lot of people in America don’t drive stick but, on the first day of filming, we needed to relocate a car for a scene. Ren jumps in, goes, ‘I’ll do it!’, slams it into first, and off she goes. I'm like, ‘Wow. This lady really knows her cars.’”
JP/TM/SplashNews.com
Since then, Anstead—who shares Amelie, 22, and Archie, 19, with Storey as well as 6-year-old son Hudson with Haack—has only fallen deeper in love with Zellweger's go-getter spirit. In fact, the Bridget Jones's Diary star played a huge part helping him track down a set of reclaimed gates he wanted to install at his parents' home.
"Ren was looking over my shoulder without me realizing," Anstead recalled of the 57-year-old. "The next day I went to buy them and they were gone. I was mad. I arrived here and they were in the barn with a balloon on them for my birthday."
"She’d secretly contacted my dad and arranged for him to collect them," he remembered, adding that "as a gift, it knocks a pair of socks on the head."
For a closer look Zellweger's love story with her ride or die, keep reading...
Discovery
April 2021: The Show That Sparked Their Love
Renée Zellweger and Ant Anstead started dating soon after meeting on the set of his Discovery+ series Celebrity IOU: Joyride. However, they initially kept their relationship private.
"Everybody knows that Renée and I have become quite close because we kept it secret for a while and now, unfortunately, some pictures were taken and put out there," Anstead told E! News in August 2021. "But it was a real pleasure to work with her. She's a super pro and she can weld."
Ant Anstead/Instagram
September 2021: Instagram Official
The pair took their relationship to the next level after five months of dating, with Anstead sharing this cozy-looking photo with the Oscar winner on his Instagram.
Instagram / Ant Anstead
October 2021: Big Easy Loving
"WOW there is something very special about New Orleans!" he captioned this Instagram post. "The late night wandering, the mind blowing history this nerd loves, the architecture, the blend of cultures, the food, the people, the smells and noises! All made made better by magical company to share it with..."
Instagram / Ant Anstead
March 2022: PDA Alert
Ant shared this animated image of the pair sharing a sizzling kiss on Instagram.
Instagram / Ant Anstead
April 2022: One Year Anniversary
"WOW! This just popped up in memories," Ant wrote on Instagram in April 2022, alongside a pic of him and Zellweger on the set of Celebrity IOU: Joyride. "One year ago today! Sat on the back of a fire engine on the final day of filming having handed two amazing men a car as a thank you from Ren. Amazing what can happen in just one year."
Instagram / Ant Anstead
July 2022: Loved Up
"This lady," Anstead wrote on Instagram. "Pure. Class. Ren x"
Instagram / Ant Anstead
January 2023: Date Night
The former Wheeler Dealers host shared this photo of a romantic night out with the Chicago alum writing, "Always Pause for moments of magic under twinkly lights…"
Instagram / Ant Anstead
April 2023: Making Magic
And Anstead called the milestone, "Two years of magic."
Instagram / Ant Anstead
April 2023: Couple's Hike
He also posted this pic of the couple walking hand in hand for the occasion.
Instagram / Ant Anstead
April 2023: Two Years Together
Anstead shared this photo of the two kissing on their second anniversary.
Ella Hovsepian/Getty Images
October 2023: Rare Public Sighting
The Judy star and the TV host celebrated the launch of Libby June Weintraub's book She Was Born: Words on Loss and Liberation with the author and her husband Stephen Weintraub in Los Angeles.
Hanna Lassen/Getty Images
November 2024: Celebrating the “Best Human” He’s Ever Met
When the trailer for Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy dropped, Anstead couldn’t help but gush about Zellweger.
"The missus was busy being brilliant this summer," he wrote on Instagram Nov. 12, 2024, alongside the footage, "she’s a bloomin Bridget genius!"
And Anstead jokingly sent a message to Zellweger's costar Leo Woodall, who played one of her love connections in the film, writing, "Oh And Leo… we need to quiet chat down a dark alleyway… x"
However, he wasn’t the only one giving her a round of applause. When an Instagram commenter recalled a past conversation with Zellweger and described it as "one of the most cherished moments," Anstead replied, “I get it! she’s the best human I have ever met…..! X”
Timmie/Splash
January 2025: Movie Premiere
And though they didn’t pose for pictures together on the red carpet, Anstead attended the premiere of Zellweger’s movie Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy in London. In fact, the evening was a family affair as he brought his two older children Amelie and Archie from a previous relationship (Anstead also shares younger son Hudson with ex-wife Christina Haack).
“Midweek movie night with the kiddos….,” he wrote on Instagram Jan. 31, 2025. “The Movie was absolutely utterly brilliant and the lead actress was mesmerising and smoking HOT (I have a mega crush on her!) I’ve let the missus know she’s my hall pass….. X.”
And Zellweger had to agree it was an unforgettable evening.
"It was a fun night," the actress told E! News that February. "We all had a really good time."
Instagram / Ant Anstead
February 2025: No. 1 Fan
Anstead expressed his excitement over the release of Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy by posting a picture of him proudly holding up a "Team Jones" sign.
"It’s incredibly moving and will touch the hearts of Bridget fans deeply!" he wrote in part of his Feb. 13, 2025 message. "I am in awe of Ren and how she gives herself fully. Sit back and enjoy…… x."
Ant Anstead/Instagram
April 2026: Ride or Die
Marking their fifth anniversary, Anstead shared a throwback photo "how it started" with the couple.
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