It was love at first bite for Stephen Moyer and Anna Paquin.
Almost literally.
The couple's steamy on-screen romance turned into a real-life love story that True Blood
fans went crazy for.
Twelve years later, the couple is still happier than ever, but their union didn't come without
a few bumps in the road.
Sit tight while we dive into how Stephen and Anna fell in love and their secret to a long-lasting
marriage.
For those of you who haven't seen True Blood, we suggest you do so immediately because you're
missing out on a lot of very hot, very shirtless, delicious Vampire men.
Aside from that, the chemistry between Anna's character Sooki and Stephen's character Bill
had us all fanning ourselves, and now we know why.
The pair met when they had to do a screen test for the show in 2008, and their connection
was instant.
Stephen shared the moment they first met, "We were both single at the time, and there
was just this kind of spark."
Naturally, things really started heating up between the two when they started filming.
True Blood is certainly not short of its very intimate and seductive scenes between the
characters, and with both Moyer and Paquin being single, we can imagine that their spark
turned into an explosion.
Following their screen test, the pair didn't see each other for three months until they
started filming.
Stephen said, "By day three or four – oh, this is going to sound so syrupy – but I
knew I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her.
It was within seconds, really, and it just became a thing."
So, what began as an on-screen romance, soon turned into an off-screen love affair.
At the time, Anna was 26 years old, while Stephen was thirty-nine.
But their thirteen-year age gap didn't get in the way of them falling head over heels
for one another.
Moyer also had two children from his previous relationships.
Although we couldn't find any information on his first wife, we know that they had one
child together, a son they named Billy.
Stephen had also dated fellow actress Lorien Haynes for seven years, and they welcomed
a daughter named Lilac.
At the beginning of their romance, the couple tried to keep their budding relationship under
wraps.
Stephen shared, "It was very important to me that they didn't feel it was fickle…We
didn't want to take anything away from the show."
However, in 2009, the couple confirmed their relationship to the public, and Stephen couldn't
help but gush over his beloved.
He said, "We are together.
It's exciting and that was there from day one.
We're very, very happy.
She's the best."
That same year, the couple went off to Hawaii for a romantic get-away, and Moyer got down
on one knee and popped the big question to Paquin.
She was elated and, of course, said yes.
They got married the following year inside a private Malibu villa.
Among the event's guests were actor Elijah Wood and fellow True Blood co-stars Carrie
Preston, Ryan Kwanten, and Sam Trammell.
However, following their marriage, Anna received a large amount of backlash regarding her sexuality.
Not long before she and Stephen wed, the actress came out as bisexual in a PSA video promoting
the Give a Damn campaign, which featured celebrities speaking out for equality.
She shared, "I'm Anna Paquin.
I'm bisexual and I give a damn."
However, after she married Stephen, there were many people that claimed that her marriage
to a man "erased" her bisexuality.
Anne was very quick to snap back with a tweet, writing, "I'm a proud bisexual who is married
to a wonderful human who happens to be a man."
Anne shared a screen grab on her Instagram Story of a user comment that read, "I am getting
tired of seeing 'bi' celebrities constantly advocate for it only to end up conventionally
married to men with multiple children, living out the so-called white-picket-fence life."
She also explained, "For a bisexual, it's not about gender.
That's not the deciding factor for who they're attracted to."
Adding that if her husband doesn't have a problem with her sexuality, why should anyone
else?
Since then, the actress has been a very vocal supporter of the LGBTQ+ community and won't
stand for those who think that have tried to re-label her sexuality.
In an interview, Paquin addressed the negative stereotypes that surround bisexuality.
Anna said, "It just felt weird being assumed to be straight because I was married to a
man."
She added, "One day there will be a time when it just won't be a big deal.
But while it's still literally illegal and punishable by death to be LGBTQ+ in multiple
countries across the planet then, yeah, I'm gonna keep talking about it!"
In 2012, the couple announced that they were expecting their first child.
A few months later, Paquin discovered that she was actually carrying twins!
Later that year, reps for the couple shared the exciting news that Anna had given birth
to their children.
The twins arrived a few weeks before their planned due date but were both healthy and
happy babies.
The couple were overjoyed with the new members of their family but chose not to reveal the
names and genders of their babies.
Finally, Moyer revealed that they had chosen Charlie for their son and Poppy for their
little girl.
A year later, Stephen and Anna were breathing a little easier when their twins celebrated
their first birthday.
Stephen shared an update on how their kids were doing, "It's all so amazing and they
had a tough start.
They were early and it was touch and go there for a while, and so anything is amazing.
I was just saying they are spitting up their first solid food.
It's fantastic."
However, the actor also expressed that he and Anna constantly worried about the health
of their children after their premature birth.
He explained that it consumed their every thought, and sometimes they were able to cope
with it, and sometimes they weren't.
He added, "And sometimes you wake up and you're desperately terrified, you're so tired you
can't do anything, so you just get through it like anyone else."
Stephen also said he doesn't want his children to grow up too fast.
"They're nuts," he said of their growing personalities.
"I think Anna's very excited about them walking and I'm like, 'Just wait.'
Our lives are over once that happens!"
Since the babes' introduction to the world, Paquin has remained resolute in her desire
to keep them as far from the spotlight as she can.
She explained, "You won't find any pictures of my children.
That's a choice we made very specifically … I want the right to say that they're not
fair game."
In 2014, True Blood aired its final season.
The show had grown so popular among fans with its cheeky plots, fantasy, gore, and, of course,
its abundance of sex.
Paquin's character Sookie has slept with nearly everyone on the show, and while some would
think that all the intimacy with their co-stars would have added some stress to her marriage
with Stephen.
However, this was far from the case.
In fact, Moyer even directed his wife in one of the episodes.
He explained, "The main thing that Anna has taught me is absolute transparency and honesty
and truth.
Even if you know that what you'll say will hurt a woman's feelings, I've learned that
it's better to be truthful with her than it is to cover up.
Ultimate honesty is what a relationship is really about."
Even after seven years of working together, Paquin and Moyer are still ready, willing,
and able to collaborate with one another.
Anna shared, "We're very, very, very comfortable and happy working together.
It's our happy place.
It's how we met, it's how we fell in love."
The couple has now been married for twelve years, and
when it comes to the secret of what makes their marriage work, Anna says it all comes
down to the fact that she and Moyer are each other's best friends.
She shared, "We want nothing but good things for each other.
His successes are my successes and vice versa and we're just really lucky."
In a rare Instagram post, the actress shared a selfie of the pair together, alongside a
heartfelt message.
She wrote, "I'm always so grateful we get to have careers we are passionate about (and
even more so after this crazy last year) but damn the long-distance thing NEVER gets any
easier.
#myperson."
In 2021, for the American Underdog premiere, the couple shared which one of their TV shows
and movies is totally off limits for their kids.
Naturally, Stephen said that their twins had never watched True Blood.
When asked if they ever will, the couple had the same answer.
Paquin responded, "Never."
Moyer added, "Never, if it's anything to do with us."
Of course, their twins are only 9 years old, and the show has been rated "R" and not recommended
for anyone under the age of 18 so that all makes complete sense.
Anna and Stephen fell in love on set, and their romance has lasted more than a decade.
They have been supportive of each other through it all, from Paquin's backlash against her
sexuality to the premature birth of their twins.
The fact that they keep their kids out of the spotlight only shows how much they value
their family bubble and how important it is to maintain a "normal" childhood for their
kids.
It really is a dream come true for True Blood fans to see Anna and Stephen living happily
ever after, and we couldn't be more thrilled for the couple.
We only wish them the best for their future, and we can't wait to see what it holds for
them.