Entertainment

42 Marriage Tips From Celebrities That We Can Actually Use

EntertainmentPublished Nov 15, 2018
By Samantha Sutton
John Krasinski and Emily Bluntjohnkrasinski/Instagram

We've seen so many devastating celebrity breakups in 2018, and honestly, we can't say we're surprised. Hollywood couples -- as much as they're celebrated, envied, and cause a whole bunch of chaos and excitement -- don't always last. In fact, we've pretty much come to anticipate that some time in the future, we'll hear the sad news that a favorite duo has called it quits. But perhaps, we shouldn't be so negative. Sure, famous relationships often get a bad rap, but there are actually a handful of spotlight-stealing couples that have managed to defy the odds and make their romance last. (Many have even been together for multiple decades!)

Thirty years into their marriage, Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson still seem just as happy as the day they said "I do." Kristen Bell and Dax Shepard continue to make us smile every time they describe their super sweet (yet completely realistic) relationship. And while Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell never officially made it down the aisle, 35 years together is enough to make us ask, "hey, what's their secret?" Thankfully, as much as some stars open up about their struggles with breakups and divorce, plenty have also shared their advice for making a marriage -- or even a long-term romance -- work.

Some of the quotes about marriage success we've found are funny, with the key to success being something small and silly. Others are more serious and talk about overcoming struggles. All, however, are inspiring, and stuff we'll at least try to remember the next time we argue with our significant other.

(Hey, we'll take any good advice wherever we can get it!)

1/42
Goldie Hawn-placeholder
Goldie Hawn
officialgoldiehawn/Instagram

Goldie Hawn

Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell never officially signed a contract, but they've been together for 35 years! So what's the secret? "Love, gratitude, compassion, because sometimes every man or every woman will drive their partner crazy. Family. Fun. Laughs. Sex," Goldie said. "If you don't nurture that, and remember, you're done."

2/42
Michelle Obama-placeholder
Michelle Obama
michelleobama/Instagram

Michelle Obama

It can't be easy being married to a president, but Michelle has a found a few tricks for maintaining her marriage to Barack Obama. "One of the keys to a successful marriage is separate bathrooms," she joked. "When [Barack] enters my bathrooms, sometimes I'm like, 'Why are you in here?' And he's like, 'I live here. Can I enjoy my bathroom too?'"

Michelle has also said seeing a counselor did wonders for their relationship. "I feel vulnerable all the time," she told Oprah.

"And I had to learn how to express that to my husband, to tap into those parts of me that missed him -- and the sadness that came from that -- so that he could understand. He didn't understand distance in the same way. You know, he grew up without his mother in his life for most of his years, and he knew his mother loved him dearly, right? I always thought love was up close. Love is the dinner table, love is consistency, it is presence. So I had to share my vulnerability and also learn to love differently. It was an important part of my journey of becoming. Understanding how to become us."

3/42
Neil Partrick Harris-placeholder
Neil Partrick Harris
nph/Instagram

Neil Partrick Harris

"In our relationship, communication is super important," NPH said to Entertainment Tonight about his successful marriage to David Burtka. "Good friends of ours said, 'You need to talk it out,' and if that means raising your voice, you need to raise your voice. Know what you're talking about. Know where you're standing as opposed to letting stuff build up, I guess."

4/42
Tom Hanks-placeholder
Tom Hanks
ritawilson/Instagram

Tom Hanks

Tom Hanks admittedly wishes "there was a secret" to his 30-year marriage to Rita Wilson. "We just like each other," he said. "You start there … I still can't believe my wife goes out with me. If we were in high school and I was just funny, I'd never have the courage to talk to her."

5/42
Will Smith-placeholder
Will Smith
willsmith/Instagram

Will Smith

Will and Jada Pinkett Smith are both super successful in their own right, and it's concentrating on themselves that's kind of their trick. "If there is a secret I would say it is that we never went into working on our relationship," Will once explained. "We only ever worked on ourselves individually. And then presented ourselves to one another better than we were previously."

6/42
Kristin Cavallari-placeholder
Kristin Cavallari
kristincavallari/Instagram

Kristin Cavallari

When Jay Cutler was signed to the Miami Dolphins, Kristin Cavallari wasn't too worried about their long-distance relationship and him being away from their Nashville home. "I have always said, it's kind of nice to miss each other. I think that's how we’ve always kind of kept our spark alive."

7/42
Emily Blunt-placeholder
Emily Blunt
johnkrasinski/Instagram

Emily Blunt

After working together on A Quiet Place, Emily Blunt and John Krasinski got a lot of questions about their relationship and how they managed to work together. "We really trust each other," she told E! News. "We're very honest with each other. We sort of have a shorthand and secret language that ultimately is gonna work for us."

8/42
Joanna Gaines-placeholder
Joanna Gaines
jonnagaines/Instagram

Joanna Gaines

The Fixer Upper duo credits the fact that they keep a standing Tuesday date night as part of their success. "Marriage requires effort and time and talking and connecting," Joanna Gaines once revealed. "You have to maintain it."

9/42
Jessica Biel-placeholder
Jessica Biel
justintimberlake/Instagram

Jessica Biel

Jessica Biel once told Marie Claire that her relationship with Justin Timberlake works because they "have similar values" and "like a lot of the same things." But she did have one piece of advice when speaking to People.

"Communication, communication, communication," she said. "The ability to be really honest about how you're feeling and what your needs are. Just be able to communicate really honestly with your partner. That's worked for us so far. I would never want to speak on anyone else's relationship, but that’s what we do."

10/42
Kim Kardashian West-placeholder
Kim Kardashian West
kimkardashian/Instagram

Kim Kardashian West

Balance is important for Kim Kardashian and Kanye West. "I think it's important that in all couples, the mom gives the husband as much attention as the kids," the reality star mom told Elle, adding that she continues to learn from Kanye and vice versa. "He's taught me to have more of an opinion. I've taught him to be a bit more calm or cautious. We’re a good balance."

11/42
Chrissy Teigen-placeholder
Chrissy Teigen
chrissyteigen/Instagram

Chrissy Teigen

"I think it's really important to be complete partners in crime," Chrissy told Well+Good about her marriage to John Legend. "I love the mentality of 'us against the world.' Even when you have kids, never forget your relationship as partners and lovers -- that's so important."

(That's especially the case when it comes to raising their little ones.)

"Even when we have Luna going insane, it’s important to be able to look at each other and be like, 'We created this thing and we're going to solve it together.'"

12/42
Kristen Bell-placeholder
Kristen Bell
kristenanniebell/Instagram

Kristen Bell

“We have a very healthy marriage and we got there by doing therapy when we needed it, and constantly doing fierce moral inventories,” Kristen once told People. Last Valentine's Day, the actress expounded on her marriage advice by sharing a whole list she had written for a fan.

"Vulnerability always begets connection and intimacy. Stay vulnerable with each other. In 10 years, when the dopamine has waned, remember: Life is a crazy ride. It’s a privilege to go through it with a partner. Take necessary separateness. It will make your marriage better. Loving someone despite their faults, failings, or other character defects is the most powerful loving thing you can do. Rejoice in what makes the other person happy, and allow them their individual interests. Know that everyone is doing the best they can with what they’ve got. So get a bigger emotional toolbox to fix your problems."

13/42
Gabrielle Union-placeholder
Gabrielle Union
gabunion/Instagram

Gabrielle Union

According to Gabrielle Union and Dwyane Wade, the best relationship advice has been not to listen to advice

"Stop listening to people who have failed miserably at relationships as they offer relationship advice; that’s the first thing," she told Ebony. "Second, my 'perfect' relationship isn’t the next person’s. Stop comparing your life, your love and your marriage. Everyone [doesn’t] have to match for it to be real, amazing and beautiful. It only needs to be [those three things] to you."

14/42
Chris Hemsworth-placeholder
Chris Hemsworth
chrishemsworth/Instagram

Chris Hemsworth

The Thor actor admitted that with three kids, finding time for date night with Elsa Pataky isn't easy, but that they push themselves to do it. "Once you have children, every instinct and every moment of your time is consumed by that. You've got nothing for each other," the superhero celeb dad said when speaking to GQ Australia. "So, make sure you have date night even if it's once in a blue moon, because most of the time you’re just too tired and you’d actually prefer to sleep."

15/42
Ashley Graham-placeholder
Ashley Graham
ashleygraham/Instagram

Ashley Graham

When Ashley Graham and her husband, Justin Ervin, get into a fight, they play something called "The Nice Game" to get rid of the tension. "One or the other says 'Say something nice, so the other has to say something nice," she explained to People, adding "It can't be a physical [thing], because that's obvious." According to Justin, it ends up working, too. "It helps put the argument or whatever the tiff is in the past, and [puts the] focus on each other again."

16/42
Faith Hill-placeholder
Faith Hill
faithhill/Instagram

Faith Hill

Since Faith Hill and Tim McGraw spend a lot of time performing together, they really value their personal space. "We both have our daily routines and we have our own dressing rooms," Faith has said. "We each have our own space to retreat to so we do get time to ourselves."

17/42
Nicole Kidman-placeholder
Nicole Kidman
nicolekidman/Instagram

Nicole Kidman

What advice does Nicole Kidman -- who is married to singer Keith Urban -- have for other couples? "Just love each other, lavish each other with love. Also we just happen to like each other too. That works."

18/42
Sarah Jessica Parker-placeholder
Sarah Jessica Parker
sjp/Instagram

Sarah Jessica Parker

SJP and Matthew Broderick have seemingly been together forever, but their secret is ... keeping things secret! "We don't discuss it," the actress revealed to HuffPost. "To reporters or anybody else. That's it! We don’t hold it up as an example and we don't air our dirty laundry."

19/42
Jessie James Decker-placeholder
Jessie James Decker
jessiejamesdecker/Instagram

Jessie James Decker

"I think women sometimes stop flirting with their husbands and you can't," Jessie James Decker has said, referring to her relationship with Eric Decker.

"Men want to want feel good -- they want to feel like their women love them. When they come home from work, don't start nagging them with questions. Go up to them and give them a big kiss and ask them how their day was."

20/42
Lauren Conrad-placeholder
Lauren Conrad
laurenconrad/Instagram

Lauren Conrad

Lauren Conrad blogged about her marriage to William Tell following their one-year anniversary. "The hardest is compromise," she wrote. "You always want to be considerate of each other. It's not just about you anymore."

21/42
Victoria Beckham-placeholder
Victoria Beckham
victoriabeckham/Instagram

Victoria Beckham

At the 2018 Forbes Women's Summit, Victoria Beckham told the audience, "I am trying to be the best wife and the best professional. When I get home I try to put the phone down and spend time with the children and spend time with David."

The former Spice Girls star also revealed that she and her husband trade off when it comes holding it down at home. "We really are equal with everything we do at home with the children. When I'm away, he’s the one doing the school run and doing the cooking."

22/42
Reese Witherspoon-placeholder
Reese Witherspoon
reesewitherspoon/Instagram

Reese Witherspoon

The actress has said that one of her top priorities is for her husband, Jim Toth, to be happy. "I want so much for him to be happy, and he wants me to be happy," she told Glamour. "That's a big part of my day, thinking, 'Is he happy?' And for him, 'Is she happy?'"

23/42
Freddie Prinze Jr.-placeholder
Freddie Prinze Jr.
sarahmgellar/Instagram

Freddie Prinze Jr.

Taking things slow is what worked for Freddie Prinze Jr. and Sarah Michelle Gellar. "We were just friends for a good two years before we ever went on a date," he revealed in an interview. "She knew what kind of guy I was. She knew what my morals were, what my priorities were and vice versa."

It led to them being the "perfect balance" as a married couple. "But it didn’t happen until years after and there was a solid foundation built. That’s probably the main reason why we’ve always been cool and groovy."

24/42
LeAnn Rimes-placeholder
LeAnn Rimes
leannrimes/Instagram

LeAnn Rimes

"We respect each other; respect is a big deal, and once you lose that, you've kind of lost everything," LeAnn told People, about her marriage to Eddie Cibrian. "He's a wonderful father and a really good man. He's kind to me, and I reciprocate."

25/42
Alec Baldwin-placeholder
Alec Baldwin
alecbaldwininsta/Instagram

Alec Baldwin

"People who get married young -- and they are very young -- I want them to just spend time with each other," Alec told etalk, speaking about his niece Hailey Baldwin's engagement to Justin Bieber. He went on to say that these days, he chooses projects based on whether or not he will be able to see his family. "If you want to have a successful marriage, you have to be together. You gotta stay together."

26/42
Alicia Keys-placeholder
Alicia Keys
aliciakeys/Instagram

Alicia Keys

The singer and Swizz Beatz like surprising each other with nights out. "One of us plans [a date] and the other has no idea where we are going," she said. "We've found some undiscovered gems and moments to take hikes or walks or just discover new things about life and each other. Those are my favorite times."

27/42
Barbra Streisand-placeholder
Barbra Streisand
Eric Charbonneau barbrastreisand/Instagram

Barbra Streisand

For Barbra Streisand, "kindness" is what's important in her relationship with James Brolin.

"The Dalai Lama says, 'Give truth with compassion ...' I used to use truth as a weapon years ago, actually, 'Well, you look fat 'cause you're fat ... I'm telling you the truth.' Truth with compassion would say it a different way --- I don't think you can take each other for granted."

28/42
Tina Fey-placeholder
Tina Fey
Splash News

Tina Fey

The best piece of advice Tina's ever received was what her mother-in-law told her before she said "I do" to Jeff Richmond. "The only thing that comes to mind is my mother-in-law, before I got married, she said, 'My only advice for marriage is don't fuss too much.' She's a little Southern lady, and it's so true. Sometimes if you're not really mad about it, don’t make yourself mad about it because you think you should be. Like, who cares?!"

29/42
Candace Cameron Bure-placeholder
Candace Cameron Bure
candacecbure/Instagram

Candace Cameron Bure

For Candace and her husband Valeri, the thing that bonds them is religion. "The reality is the glue for us is Jesus," she said to People. "It's the Bible. You know, when there are arguments or we're compromising and in ways, it's always like, 'Well, let's just go back to the Bible.' It's the foundation for us. So it's not about winning or losing. But doing this journey together."

30/42
Julia Roberts-placeholder
Julia Roberts
juliaroberts/Instagram

Julia Roberts

Julia Roberts and Danny Moder are both in the entertainment business, so Mario Lopez asked her for advice she'd give to other "entertainment couples" in an interview for Extra. "I don't think it's exclusive to entertainment couples," she said, thinking it over. "I wouldn't even think of us as an entertainment couple, but I don't know -- probably kissing."

31/42
Judith Light-placeholder
Judith Light
judithlight/Instagram

Judith Light

Judith Light says that her long-distance marriage to Robert Desiderio -- where he lives in LA, she resides in NYC, and they trade off on traveling to see each other -- has "been the best."

"There's a solid, different kind of intimacy that comes about out of this and the support for each other and each other's lives. I think people need alone time. I know I'm one of those people that needs that."

32/42
Ellen DeGeneres-placeholder
Ellen DeGeneres
portiaderossi/Instagram

Ellen DeGeneres

After Portia de Rossi created The Ellen DeGeneres Wildlife Fund for her wife's birthday, Ellen told the audience about her marriage, "When we got married, Portia's line was, 'It's good to be loved, it's profound to be understood,' and she understands me because that is the best gift anyone could have ever given me."

33/42
Salma Hayek-placeholder
Salma Hayek
salmahayek/Instagram

Salma Hayek

"We support each other in everything we do," the actress said when talking about Francois-Henri Pinault last year. "We want the other one to strive. Makes you happy when the other one strives. And you know what, we don't have a very strong social life, because we really like to spend time together. So we do spend a lot of quality time together."

34/42
Mary Steenburgen-placeholder
Mary Steenburgen
mary_steenburgen/Instagram

Mary Steenburgen

Mary has been with Ted Danson for 25 years, and for them, a specific compliment is key. "He does tell me every single day of my life I'm beautiful, and I do know a lot of women live without that," she said in an interview earlier this year. "And it does matter, someone just telling you that."

35/42
William H. Macy-placeholder
William H. Macy
felicityhuffman/Instagram

William H. Macy

The actor admits to using the same trick in his relationship with Felicity Huffman that he does on-screen. "When you don't feel it, fake it," he said on People Now. "Something shiny or flowers, it goes a long way. You have to put your attention on it. When you don't feel it, do it anyway."

36/42
Aaron Paul-placeholder
Aaron Paul
glassofwhiskey/Instagram

Aaron Paul

Aaron Paul relies on talking things out with his wife Lauren. "People get in fights because they don't communicate, because you don't want to hurt the other person," he said to Elle. "If you do want to hurt the other person, then shame on you -- you're an a**hole. My wife and I do not argue. We communicate. We talk. But we've never fought in our entire relationship."

37/42
Ree Drummond-placeholder
Ree Drummond
thepioneerwoman/Instagram

Ree Drummond

The Pioneer Woman revealed that when it comes to her 21-year marriage with Ladd, the secret lies in the bedroom. "We always touch feet at night. Even if one of us a little bit miffed, and or if someone's not feeling it .., if our feet touch, I always know, 'OK, it's all good.'"

38/42
Tom Brady-placeholder
Tom Brady
gisele/Instagram

Tom Brady

For Tom Brady and Gisele Bundchen, being total opposites has worked for them. "She flies in the sky and she's so creative and I'm very rooted," he said to Oprah. "So she stretches me in ways without her I couldn't be stretched."

39/42
Michael Douglas-placeholder
Michael Douglas
catherinezetajones/Instagram

Michael Douglas

The actor and Catherine Zeta-Jones were on the rocks at one point, but they were both willing to put in the effort in order to save their marriage. "If both people want to work something out and make it better, you can do it," he said when speaking to the Daily Mail. "You can't do it if it's just one person."

40/42
Suzanne Somers-placeholder
Suzanne Somers
suzannesomers/Instagram

Suzanne Somers

Suzanne Somers wrote a lot about being married to Alan Hamel in her book, Two's Company: A Fifty-Year Romance with Lessons Learned in Love, Life & Business. "Listen to one another, give each other a lot of attention, keep it exciting, date," she advised. "My marriage is very romantic ... We might sit here and have a tequila ... We dance, I cook, we sit out and watch the moonlight on the ocean."

41/42
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg-placeholder
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg
Splash News

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg

RBG was married to Marty Ginsburg for 56 years before he passed away in 2010, so she obviously gets the question all the time.

"Another often-asked question when I speak in public: 'Do you have some good advice you might share with us?'" she wrote in a 2016 essay about tips on being married for so long.

"Yes, I do. It comes from my savvy mother-in-law, advice she gave me on my wedding day. 'In every good marriage,' she counseled, 'it helps sometimes to be a little deaf.' I have followed that advice assiduously, and not only at home through 56 years of a marital partnership nonpareil. I have employed it as well in every workplace, including the Supreme Court. When a thoughtless or unkind word is spoken, best tune out. Reacting in anger or annoyance will not advance one’s ability to persuade."

42/42
Jamie Lee Curtis-placeholder
Jamie Lee Curtis
TheRossOwenShow/Twitter

Jamie Lee Curtis

Not many realize that Jamie Lee Curtis has been married to Christopher Guest since 1984, and they pretty much have one rule for keeping things going. "Don't get divorced," she said on Today in 2015. "It's a fascinating thing. I could write a book on marriage called Don't Leave."

celeb couplecelebs
Cafemom Logo
This is motherhood #nofilter

AboutTermsContactPrivacyPRIVACY SETTINGSSUBMIT A STORY
© 2024 WILD SKY MEDIA.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
PART OF WILD SKY MEDIA
| FAMILY & PARENTING
CAFEMOMMAMÁSLATINAS
LITTLETHINGSMOM.COM
This site is owned and operated by Bright Mountain Media, Inc., a publicly owned company trading with the symbol: BMTM.