Paul Rudd was once named the hottest man alive, courtesy of People Magazine.
Not only is he a widely loved and successful actor, but he's also a beloved husband and father. Who is his wife?
Well, Paul has been happily married to Julie Yaeger for almost twenty years.
They've kept their relationship relatively far from the Hollywood spotlight and have always prioritized their family without having to sacrifice their careers.
So how is it that their marriage has stayed so strong over the past two decades?
Stick with us while we dive into Paul and Julie's love story and how they've made sure their lives remain as "normal" as possible despite their growing fame.
Paul and Julie met back in 1995, just before he made his big break in the cult classic film, 'Clueless.'
Rudd, who was twenty-six years old at the time, was running late for an audition when he arrived in New York and went straight to his publicist's office with his luggage.
There was a young woman working there who offered to drop his bags off at his friend's apartment.
As it turned out, that 'woman' was none other than twenty-year-old Julie Yaeger. A few days later, Paul asked her out to lunch.
Paul recalled that the first person he met in New York was his future wife.
"We started talking, and there was a maturity with her. She had experienced some tragedy in her life, I had too, and the impression I got was, wow, this is a woman."
The actor explained that he was "really taken" with who she was and how she'd overcome adversities in her life.
He added, "There was a perspective that she had and still has on the world that you don't come to easily — it's earned and most people don't have it at such a young age."
Paul had also experienced times in his life when things weren't just going well for him. He was once robbed at gunpoint and lost a friend in an auto accident that same year.
Then his car was stolen, his rental destroyed in a hit-and-run, and his second replacement was hit — all in the span of a week.
That series of unfortunate events resulted in a "meltdown," and eventually, the actor decided to move to New York.
Rudd recalled in an interview that it was the 'Clueless' writer and director, Amy Heckerling, who told him, "You need to get a publicist." So that's what he did.
He set off to the Big Apple to pursue his dreams. So, if it wasn't for his traumatic experiences, he wouldn't have decided to move to New York,
and he might never have met his future wife. Sometimes it's the difficult things in life that lead people to where they're meant to be.
In 2003, the pair said "I do" after eight years of dating. Paul Rudd and Julie Rudd had their first child, son Jack Sullivan Rudd, in 2004, followed by daughter Darby Rudd in 2009.
Rudd explained in a 2011 interview how he stays out of gossip columns by revealing just how "normal" he and his wife really are.
He shared, "I don't think I'm going to sell a lot of tabloids. My wife and I have been together for 16 years. My parents were married my whole life until my father passed away a few years ago."
Their two kids are pretty normal, too.
When Rudd's then-10-year-old son Jack found out his dad would be playing a superhero in Ant-Man, his response was priceless, saying, "Well, I can't wait to see how stupid that'll be."
Paul said, "I identify myself as a parent and a husband way more than somebody who rides around on the back of an ant."
Rudd has always prided himself most on being a family man first. He explained that he didn't come from a family of actors and didn't grow up around famous people.
He added, "... So when I go to Los Angeles for work, or to a premiere, I like it because it feels like I'm just popping in."
And if there's one thing he likes more than being a dad, it's being a dorky dad.
"My favorite thing is when they roll their eyes because it's such a dad joke, but I know they find it funny. They kind of try to fight a smile."
The couple has continued to keep their family lives private, but for those of you who want a glimpse of what the Rudds are like behind closed doors, all you need to do is watch their films!
Paul and Julie have actually used much of their family life to inspire their movies.
Speaking in 2012, Rudd confirmed he and Julie recorded their unfiltered, everyday conversations to help with the writing of Judd Apatow's film, 'This Is 40.'
The movie is a romantic comedy about a married couple struggling with the idea of turning forty.
Paul shared, "While it's not traditionally romantic, I would say it's arguably romantic in its intimacy.
The idea that a couple can do that for each other is very romantic."
Paul's character gets a hemorrhoid check in one of the film's more memorable scenes. He explained in an interview that it's about as real as it gets.
Rudd explained, "Sometimes in a real marriage, it's about asking your wife to look at this and what does that look like?"
He also added that "being able to fart in front of each other" is what he considers to be a "very sweet gesture."
The couple also inspired some of Apatow's other films, such as 'Knocked up' and 'Fun Mom Dinner.'
When Julie turned to screenwriting, it was only natural she'd use their life as inspiration.
While writing 'Fun Mom Dinner' -which Paul executive produced and co-starred-in- she wanted to show what a real marriage looks like, so she based some of the scenes on her own family.
In 2021, Paul was named People magazine's Sexiest Man Alive.
When he found out he had landed that honor, his wife was the only one he told before it was officially announced.
He said, "She was stupefied. But you know she was very sweet about it. After some giggling and shock, she said 'Oh, they got it right.' And that was very sweet.
She was probably not telling the truth, but what's she going to say?"
However, there's a lot more to him than the title of 'Sexiest Man Alive.' In fact, becoming a father made him realize how important it is for him to express himself.
He understood that as a parent, he wanted his children to know that they could express themselves and be honest with their emotions.
So he made sure that whenever he was sad, he wouldn't shy away from crying in front of his children.
Paul revealed, "I've experienced more profound moments in my life: my dad dying, being a parent. All of a sudden, your sensitivity is heightened.
I see things on TV like 'Undercover Boss,' and they knock me to the ground. My kids make fun of me. 'Oh, Dad's crying again.'"
He's also the kind of dad that likes to lighten the mood by making people laugh.
He explained that he always felt like "jokes can help a situation," and that "It's important that we all just remember to laugh. Because life's hard."
There's a whole other side to his personality, which he saves for his wife and family.
He explained, "In my private life, I'm dealing with all the scars and traumas and real stuff from living my real life.
When I'm in public, I'm giving a very filtered, smooth version of it."
Paul and Julie are also the proud owners of a candy store in New York with another celebrity couple.
Rudd and his wife live in a home in Upstate New York, and it just so happens actor Jeffrey Dean Morgan and his wife, Hilarie Burton, also live in the area.
Samuel's Sweet Shop was an institution in the town since 1994, but when its owner died, the store fell on hard times, and the Rudds, along with the Morgans, stepped in to save the store.
As it turns out, the two men were loyal customers of the store and had gone there for years.
Julie revealed how she feels about being an owner of a candy store, saying, "The magic of Samuel's, especially during the holidays, makes me feel like a little girl again."
When it comes to the secret of their happy marriage over the last two decades, Paul and Julie always make sure to keep their focus on what's important, and for them, that's their relationship and their family.
By doing so, they've done what a lot of Hollywood couples have only dreamed of. Their strict priorities have allowed them to thrive in the entertainment world as well.
Of course, they also remember the importance of laughter and not taking themselves too seriously.
That's why we're pretty sure Paul Rudd and Julie Yaeger will be together for decades to come.