Hugh Hefner's widow Crystal Harris, 39, remarries nine years after Playboy founder's death

Hugh Hefner's widow Crystal Harris has tied the knot, nearly nine years after the Playboy founder died at age 91.

The 39-year-old former centerfold married Hawaii businessman James Ward, 42, in an intimate ceremony held on Aitutaki in the Cook Islands.

Harris, who was married to Hefner from 2012 until his death in 2017, told People magazine, 'We chose the Cook Islands because of how remote it is.'

'There are no big chain hotels, which makes it feel incredibly peaceful and authentic. It’s also home to one of the most beautiful lagoons in the world. 

'Since James and I both love the ocean and nature it felt like the perfect place for us to start this chapter of our lives,' she added. 

It comes nearly one year after the couple announced their engagement.

Harris and Ward enlisted wedding planner Sandi Brown, who helped them coordinate a 'simple, elegant, and ocean-inspired' ceremony.

'Because the wedding is small, it allowed us to focus on the meaningful details rather than managing a large event,' said the former Playboy model.

'We didn’t want a huge production. We wanted something quiet and personal where we could really be present with each other and the moment.'

The bride said she 'instantly fell in love with' Oksana Mukha's Margo gown, which she wore to walk down the aisle.

'It reminded me of a Disney princess dress – romantic, timeless, and very feminine,' she said of the dress, which boasted over 5,400 Swarovski crystals.

Reflecting on her engagement last year, the blonde beauty wrote on Instagram, 'April 26. The morning after he asked. 

'We woke up in a world that felt softer, quieter – like it had shifted to make space for what’s next. There was a stillness in the air, like even time was pausing for us. 

'I look at him and know: this is the kind of love you don’t search for. It arrives when you’re ready – steady, curious, and full of wonder.'

Debuting her romance with Ward in September 2024, Harris gushed that the new relationship 'healed' her.

After dating her beau for five months, she told People magazine he 'values her feelings' and makes her feel like the 'real me.'

She said: 'With James, my feelings are valued, validated. I am seen and I am heard. 

'I’m nurturing the real me, my adventurous spirit, my inner child. I feel like I’ve become the person I always needed when I was growing up.'

'I feel accepted and more myself than ever before,' she detailed.

Harris famously wed Hefner when she was 26 and he was 86. 

She published a memoir in 2024, Only Say Good Things: Surviving Playboy And Finding Myself, in which she made a number of bombshell claims, including that she never loved the late magazine publisher and felt imprisoned in their marriage.

She'd previously told Daily Mail that Hefner was agoraphobic and shunned most public excursions, and that the seemingly luxurious Playboy mansion was in a state of decay.