The Real Life Partners Of The Cast Of The Rookie
The main focus of a police procedural like "The Rookie" isn't usually its characters' romantic relationships, but love always finds a way. As fans get to know a show's characters, they inevitably start rooting for a 'ship or two. Some viewers might also find themselves hoping that the chemistry they see on screen will spill over into the real world. However, when it comes to the main cast of "The Rookie," most of them already have real-life partners.
"Chenford" is one of the most popular pairings on "The Rookie," thanks in part to the excruciatingly slow burn between Tim Bradford (Eric Winter) and Lucy Chen (Melissa O'Neil) that kept fans waiting four long seasons for a first kiss. Their shippers' payoff included a big bonus: a first real kiss. There's no chance of an off-screen romance here, as Winter is happily married. However, if O'Neil is dating someone, they're nowhere to be seen on her Instagram page as of this writing.
Another main couple on "The Rookie," Bailey Nune (Jenna Dewan) and John Nolan (Nathan Fillion), got married during Season 6. Dewan told Us Weekly that she and "Shameless" actor Steve Kazee were doing some wedding planning of their own in 2023, three years after the birth of their son Callum. Dewan also shares a daughter named Everly with her ex-husband, Channing Tatum. As for Fillion, he's struggled so much in the romance department that his exes have said something to him about it.
Nathan Fillion's famous exes
Nathan Fillion has never been married, but he's almost made it to the altar thrice. Unlike his "Rookie" character John Nolan, Fillion doesn't appear to be in a relationship as of this writing. From the sound of it, he has good reason to be reticent about getting serious with a special someone. "I'm still in touch with about 90 percent of my exes. They would describe me as being unlucky in love," he told Women's Health in 2010. At least he can remain on friendly terms with his former flames.
Fillion's dating history can't compete with the love life of Pete Davidson, who plays his character's younger brother on "The Rookie." However, some of Fillion's exes are familiar faces. He got engaged to his "General Hospital" co-star Vanessa Marcil in 1995, according to Hello!, but the couple split up six months later. He was then romantically linked to "Entourage" actor Perrey Reeves, whom he was photographed with on occasion. He also tweeted about her "yogasmic" retreat in 2012.
Short-lived engagements reportedly followed with two more rumored fiancées, "Animal Kingdom" actor Christina Ochoa and "Guardians of the Galaxy" star Mikaela Hoover. Fillion began dating George Clooney's ex Krista Allen in 2015, and he occasionally interacted with her on social media. When Allen tweeted about the age-rewinding effects of some skincare products, Fillion replied, "At this rate, you'll look 14 by January!" By 2019, Steve Harvey was helping Allen find a new love.
Eric Winter has some side gigs with his spouse
Eric Hunter and "Fantasy Island" star Roselyn Sánchez have been married since 2008. The couple enjoys bantering together so much that they launched a podcast, "He Said, Ella Dijo," in 2019. They recounted their first encounter at an event in their first episode. "I walked in and I saw this girl, and I was like, 'Oh, she's hot. I think I know her from somewhere,'" Winter recalled. Sánchez then chimed in to say, "He knew exactly from where." (It was "Rush Hour.") Winter's uninspired pickup line, asking Sánchez if she wanted a drink, fell flat because she didn't drink. Undeterred, he brought her some pineapple juice.
In addition to working together on their podcast, the couple has co-written a children's book, "Sebi and the Land of Cha Cha Cha." Surprisingly, it took them over a decade to act together, with their first time sharing the screen being in the 2019 Hallmark movie "A Taste of Summer." The following year, Sánchez played a reporter on "The Rookie."
The couple's daughter, Sebella Rose, was born in 2012. Five years later, Sánchez and Winter welcomed their second child, a son they named Dylan Gabriel. Both children were conceived via IVF. "It's brutal, mentally and emotionally," Sánchez told People of the revelation that she couldn't conceive naturally when she began trying to get pregnant in her 30s. However, she felt like she became a mom at the right time.
Why singer Gustavo Galindo was intrigued by Alyssa Diaz
Singer-songwriter Gustavo Galindo proposed to Alyssa Diaz in 2019 while in Maui during a ceremony officiated by a Hawaiian priestess. According to "The Rookie" star, it was so elaborate that felt like she and Galindo were already tying the knot.
Galindo was born in Mexico City but moved to Sacramento, California, at age 12. He told Remezcla that he had to work hard to turn his passion for music into a career, saying, "I've never been what you would call a natural or a prodigy." His dedication to his craft paid off when his debut album, "Entre La Ciudad y El Mar," earned a Grammy nomination in 2012.
Unlike many of Hollywood's singer-actor couples, Galindo and Diaz didn't know they were both involved in the entertainment industry when they first met. On "He Said, Ella Dijo," Diaz said that some of her "Rookie" castmates had helped her set up an online dating profile before she jetted off to Mexico City to film "Narcos." Through the app, she connected with Galindo, who was in the city at the time. Galindo had no clue that Diaz was an actor until they started chatting and she told him she was working on a project that she couldn't divulge any details about due to signing a non-disclosure agreement. "And he liked it, he liked it because of the mystery," Diaz recalled. Galindo agreed, saying, "That makes it more intriguing."
Mekia Cox has two children with husband Britt Leach
Viewers have watched Mekia Cox navigate relationships on "Chicago Med," "The Rookie," and "Once Upon a Time." But when it comes to her real-life romance with basketball analyst Britt Leach, she doesn't put it all out there for the world to see. She did, however, share a ton of details about their 2018 wedding in an interview with The Knot. One fun fact: Her hairstyle was inspired by the character she played in "Once Upon a Time," Princess Tiana from "The Princess and the Frog." Cox also revealed that the wedding was Caribbean-themed and that guests freed a bunch of butterflies during the ceremony. "This weekend I married my best friend, my soulmate, my first love," Cox wrote on Instagram after she and Leach were officially husband and wife.
What we know about Leach mostly comes from Cox's Instagram. She praised his ability to keep her laughing in a 2020 post, and she revealed that they both have a goofy side in 2023 when she posted a throwback video of the two of them making silly faces at each other on their wedding day. Leach is also a father of two. He and Cox welcomed their first daughter in 2018, and when Cox announced that she was expecting again in 2022, she got to share that life moment with her "Rookie" character, Nyla Harper. Instead of trying to hide her pregnancy, showrunner Alexi Hawley decided to turn it into a storyline.
Richard T. Jones posted a photo of his wife that confused some fans
From 1996 to 2021, Richard T. Jones was married to Nancy Jones. "Thank you for loving me in spite of myself and for blessing me with 4 wonderful kids," he wrote in a 2017 Facebook post celebrating their anniversary. The couple seemed to be going strong in 2020 when they appeared together in an episode of the HGTV series "Home Town," but they got divorced just one year later.
Because the pair kept their split quiet, some fans were confused in 2023 when Richard posted a photo of his "beautiful wife" on Instagram — and the woman pictured with him was not Nancy. "What happened to Nancy?" one Instagrammer asked. "Google says this ain't your wife?" read another response to his post. But Richard was very much remarried. "Kristy Jones blesses my heart daily y'all. Love me some her!!!" he captioned another photo of him and his new wife gazing adoringly at each other.
Kristy's maiden name is Horiuchi. In 2020, she joined Richard's production company, Prophecy Pictures Entertainment, after previously working as a makeup artist. Some of the movies and TV series she's done makeup for include "Code Black," "The Neon Demon," and "Hart of Dixie." She also co-produced the 2013 horror movie "Toolbox Murders 2." One of the first projects Kristy and Richard began developing through their production company was a biopic about Dr. Jean-Jacques Muyembe, the Congolese virologist who discovered the Ebola virus.