2012 Celebrity Weddings

Though the couple had already debuted their wedding bands months earlier, Natalie Portman and Benjamin Millepied had a “wedding celebration” on August 4, more than a year after Portman had given birth to their son Aleph. Portman, 31, and Millepied, a 35-year-old dancer and choreographer, exchanged vows in a traditional Jewish ceremony at a home in Big Sur, California. The 45-minute ceremony took place under the moonlight on a bluff that overlooked the ocean. Afterwards, guests noshed on vegan dishes, selected by Portman who follows a strict vegan diet. Instead of wedding cake, the two served a sweet treat from Millepied's native France: macarons.

In one of the biggest celebrity surprises of the year, stars Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds pulled off a super secret wedding in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina – just outside of Charleston – on September 9. The couple, who had only been dating about a year, exchanged vows in front of 60 family members and friends at Boone Hall Plantation & Gardens, a location that has served as the backdrop for several movie and TV productions, including, most notably, scenes from 2004’s “The Notebook.”

Since Drew Barrymore and art consultant Will Kopelman were already expecting a child together, they decided to go ahead and make it official, exchanging vows in the backyard of Barrymore’s $5.7 million Mediterranean-style home in posh Montecito, California, on June 2. "The day was perfect," Barrymore, who wore a Chanel dress accessorized with over 14 carats worth of diamonds, told People. "Everyone we love and care about was there. It was as fun and meaningful as we ever could have hoped." The couple welcomed a daughter, Olive Barrymore Kopelman, on September 26.

Justin Timberlake, 31, and Jessica Biel, 30, looked pretty ecstatic in their wedding photo on the cover of People in October ... and the "SexyBack" singer was literally jumping for joy. The on-again, off-again couple had family and friends fly all the way to Italy to attend their lavish nuptials on October 19 (where Timberlake serenaded his bride) and followed it up with a $5,715-a-night African honeymoon. Must be nice!

It sounds pretty perfect: A wedding at sunset at a private home in picturesque Big Sur, California ... and it was the wedding Anne Hathaway got to have when she tied the knot with boyfriend of four years, Adam Shulman, on September 29. The “Les Miserables” star wore a dress designed by her pal Valentino for the ceremony, which was held in front of about 180 guests. And while she donned a pixie cut for the occasion (after having to cut her hair for her "Les Mis" role), it wasn't her ideal style for the big day. In a recent interview with The Sun, Hathaway recounted how Shulman kind of proposed: "He said, 'OK, without giving anything away about what is coming in the next few months, how do you feel about being a short-haired bride,' and I went: 'Noooooooooooooo.'"

It was love at first sight for Alec Baldwin when he met yoga instructor Hilaria Baldwin, 28, at a restaurant and told her, “I must know you.” A little over a year later, the 54-year-old actor sealed the deal on June 30. Their wedding, held at the 203-year-old St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral in New York City, drew 175 guests, including Baldwin’s co-star Tina Fey, Woody Allen, and Mariska Hargitay. Baldwin, who was previously married to Kim Basinger, told People, “Marriage was made for you to make a commitment to someone who is worth it. And I met someone who is worth it.”

Matthew McConaughey and the mother of his two children, model Camila Alves, looked like the picture-perfect couple when they got hitched in front of 120 of their closest friends and family on their Austin, Texas, estate on June 9. Celeb guests included Reese Witherspoon, Kenny Chesney, and Woody Harrelson — and, of course, their adorable children Levi, 4, and Vida, who turns 3 in January, who served as the ring bearer and flower girl. "Somehow they both seem to understand what we are doing on a spiritual level," Alves told People after the wedding. In July the couple made another big announcement: They’re expecting baby number three!

Tiki Barber and Traci Lynn Johnson, a couple who courted controversy from the very start of their relationship, tied the knot in a rather casual and quiet way when they wed at City Hall in Manhattan on July 19. The two first made headlines together in 2010 when reports surfaced that former New York Giants player and “Today” show contributor Barber had left his pregnant wife (and mother of his two older sons), Ginny Cha, for Johnson, a then-23-year-old intern on the morning show (Barber was 37 at the time). “Many thanks to the NYC Clerk's office, especially James Mitchell who married me to my love Traci Lynn Johnson!” Barber tweeted after the nuptials. “Excited for the next chapters ...”

Though Rosie O’Donnell and girlfriend Michelle Rounds wed on June 9, the couple waited to announce their big news until late August, a few weeks after O’Donnell had suffered a heart attack. Though the couple, who got engaged in December 2011, had planned to marry in August, O’Donnell explained they pushed the wedding up to June after Rounds was diagnosed with the rare disease desmoids tumors so that they could marry prior to Rounds’ first surgery. "We married in private before [Michelle's] surgery, just the [two] of us," O’Donnell wrote on her blog. "When we r both well enough will have the wedding of r dreams surrounded by those we cherish."

The word elope might conjure up images of quickie weddings at a Vegas chapel, but Ricki Lake eloped in a different way. The 43-year-old married in a secret ceremony somewhere in Southern California in early April, and tweeted out a photo of herself in a wedding a dress, writing, "Yup, this is me. Sadie Sadie married lady. :) :) Love is in the air. Xo." The talk show host – who has two children, Milo, 15, and Owen, 10, from her first marriage – wed 40-year-old jewelry designer Christian Evans, whom she had been dating for 18 months.

Though country singer Wynonna Judd had known fellow musician Cactus Moser for more than 20 years, the two only struck up a romance in 2009. After Moser popped the question at Christmas in 2011, the couple tied the knot on June 10 in Tennessee – in between tour dates. Sadly, the newlyweds faced tough times right away when Moser was seriously injured in a motorcycle accident two months later and had to have his leg amputated.

After proposing to his manager Alicia Etheredge during a concert in 2010, Bobby Brown finally got hitched in Honolulu, Hawaii, on June 18 with a family-friendly affair. The couple was joined by Brown’s children, Landon, 23, La'Princia, 22, and Bobby Jr., 19, and their son, Cassius, 3, who served as ring bearer. However, his 19-year-old daughter with the late Whitney Houston, Bobbi Kristina, chose not to attend the wedding, which even featured flame-throwing dancers. Unfortunately, Brown’s 2012 marriage got off to a pretty rough start – the New Edition singer did a stint in rehab and picked up a DUI in October.

"The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants" star Amber Tamblyn, 29, married long-time boyfriend, 49-year-old "Arrested Development" actor David Cross, in an outdoor ceremony on October 6. Tamblyn ditched the white gown and arrived for her wedding – via canoe – wearing a yellow dress and no shoes. Now that's a unique way to take the plunge!

Musician Neil Diamond, 71, tied the knot for the third time on April 22 in Los Angeles. when he said “I do” to Katie McNeil, his manager who’s also 29 years his junior. "Katie and I got married last night, we wish you all could've been there," the “Sweet Caroline” singer tweeted to his more than 500,000 followers. "It was magical! Love, Neil."

Jack Osbourne and girlfriend Lisa Stelly saw some real ups and downs prior to their October 7 nuptials. In April, the couple got to welcome daughter Pearl, but just two weeks later Osbourne was dealt a huge blow when he learned he had multiple sclerosis. Osbourne, now 27, announced the bad news in June, telling People, "I was just angry and frustrated and kept thinking, 'Why now?' I've got a family and that's what's supposed to be the most important thing." The couple was able to focus on happy times in October, however, when they married in Hawaii in front of 50 guests including, of course, Jack’s parents Sharon and Ozzy Osbourne, and baby Pearl.

Singer Mark McGrath, 44, finally said “I do” to longtime girlfriend – and the mother of his 2-year-old twins – 39-year-old Carin Kingsland on September 24 at Santa Barbara, California’s San Ysidro Ranch. "After 18 years of breakups, makeups, beautiful twins and an unwavering love that provided some pretty damn good song lyrics, we are happy to announce that we are finally married," the couple told People after the wedding.

They finally did it! "The Good Wife" actor Chris Noth and his longtime girlfriend, Tara Wilson, got married in Maui on April 6, a full decade after meeting back when she was working as a bartender at Noth's NYC bar The Cutting Room in 2002. The couple are parents to son Orion, who turns 5 in January.

"Grey's Anatomy" star Sara Ramirez said "I do" to business analyst Ryan Debolt during a small ceremony in New York on the 4th of July. And she certainly felt the fireworks. “There’s nothing like the first kiss once you’ve been pronounced husband and wife," she recently told Latina magazine. "It’s such a wonderful moment!”

Ellie Kemper went from "Bridesmaids" to real-life bride when she wed TV writer Michael Koman, who previously wrote for "Late Night With Conan O'Brien" and "The Colbert Report," at the Blessed Sacrament Roman Catholic Church in New York City on July 7. And they did it in front of lots of funny people, including Kemper's "Bridesmaids" co-star Kristen Wiig and former castmate from "The Office," Mindy Kaling.

Talk about a May-December romance! Legendary actor Dick Van Dyke, 86, married makeup artist Arlene Silver, who is a whopping 46 years his junior, at his Malibu, California, home on February 29. “Kind of on the spur of the moment, we decided Leap Day would be the best time to do it," Van Dyke told RumorFix earlier this year. The couple met in 2006 when Silver did the "Mary Poppins" star's makeup prior to the SAG Awards. “He’s the happiest person I ever met,” Silver said in the same interview. “He’s got an infectious spirit.”

Lady Antebellum member Dave Hayward tied the knot with music exec Kelli Cashiola on April 14 … and the couple kept it country! They had their wedding just outside of Nashville at Front Porch Farms in Ashland City, Tennessee, and asked singer-songwriter Dave Barnes – who’s co-written tunes for country crooners including Blake Shelton and Billy Currington – to perform at the ceremony.

Former Fall Out Boy frontman Patrick Stump married longtime girlfriend Elisa Yao in Chicago on September 28 in front of family and friends, including Stump's old bandmate Pete Wentz. The 28-year-old groom has dropped and kept off 60 pounds in recent years. "I lost the weight for health reasons, but embracing looking different was me reclaiming my identify because I was hiding for so long," he told Us Weekly last year.

“Bridesmaids” actor Chris O’Dowd got his very own bride when he married Scottish-born TV host and writer Dawn Porter on August 27. In an unusual move, Porter announced she wouldn’t keep her maiden name as is, but wouldn’t take O’Dowd’s name either, instead coming up with a compromise: O'Porter. "I am lucky that I have the option to keep Porter prominent and take a tiny letter that, for me, expresses the unity with my husband that I am proud of," she wrote in Glamour magazine.

For “Sex and the City” star Cynthia Nixon and her fiancée of three years, Christine Marinoni, getting hitched was worth the wait. Once same sex marriage became legal in New York City, the pair decided to make their union official on May 27. Nixon, who wore a chartreuse gown by Carolina Herrera and a silver-and-white ribbon headband adorned with Fred Leighton diamond lovebirds, described her dress to Elle as an “art deco skyscraper,” and noted that she felt like Titania from “A Midsummer’s Night’s Dream” while wearing it. Marinoni chose a suit with a color-coordinated tie to match her leading lady for the emotion-filled day. In addition to Nixon's two children (Samantha and Charles) from a former relationship, she and Marinoni have a 2-year-old son named Max.

A year after finalizing his divorce from Lisa Ann Russell, his wife of 15 years and the mother of his two children, former “Saved by the Bell” star Mark Paul Gosselaar tied the knot for a second time, this time to advertising exec Catriona McGinn. The two married at Sunstone Winery in Central California’s Santa Ynez Valley before heading to Italy for their honeymoon, where they spent a lot of their time indulging in one of the country’s greatest assets: its food. “Trust me, we are going to eat our a—es off!" he told People. “We’re really excited about that element.” Gosselaar’s ex remarried seven months prior to yet another celebrity, “Survivor” host Jeff Probst.

Zach Galifianakis, 42, headed north of the border to marry girlfriend of several years, 29-year-old nonprofit executive Quinn Lundberg. The two wed in a ceremony at a farm attached to Vancouver’s University of British Columbia on August 11. In lieu of gifts, the couple asked guests to donate to the non-government organization (NGO) Growing Voices, a non-profit Lundberg helped launch, which creates sustainable projects in various communities.

“How I Met Your Mother” star Cobie Smulders won’t have to tell 3-year-old daughter Shaelyn about how she married her father … the little girl got to attend the wedding herself. Smulders, 30, and her longtime fiancé, “SNL” castmember Tarran Killam, also 30, got married on September 8 at Alisal Guest Ranch and Resort in Solvang, California, near Santa Barbara, where the actress donned two dresses: a long one for the ceremony and a short one for the reception.

Though actress Meagan Good had known producer DeVon Franklin for years, the two didn’t strike up a romantic relationship until after production wrapped on 2011’s “Jumping the Broom,” a film she starred in and he produced. After that, however, the couple jumped on the fast track, getting engaged in March 2012 and married less than three months after that in June. Good and Franklin remained abstinent until marriage. Prior to their nuptials, Good told Life & Style magazine that she knew Franklin, who is also a Seventh-Day Adventist minister, was the one for her because he agreed to be abstinent until their wedding day. "He was willing to be celibate with me for a year," she said. "He loves God, more than I love God, so I don't think there's anything wrong."

Though Annie Lennox had previously said she’d never marry again after two failed attempts, the Eurythmics songstress just couldn’t help herself, and on September 15 tied the knot with Dr. Mitch Besser, a South African doctor who founded Mothers2Mothers, a group focused on preventing the mother-to-child transmission of HIV. The couple, both 57, married on a private boat on London’s Thames River. The two met when Lennox began working with Besser’s foundation. He was married at the time.

TV star Alfonso Ribiero tied the knot for a second time on October 13 when he married writer Angela Ukrich after a three-month engagement. The couple wed in a sunset ceremony at an undisclosed location in California in front of 175 guests. "Last night I got married to the most incredible woman in the world," Ribiero, 41, tweeted the following day. Ribiero has a 9-year-old daughter with first wife Robin Stapler, whom he divorced in 2006.

Jerry Lee Lewis became infamous when, at age 23, he married his 13-year-old cousin, Myra Gale Brown, back in 1957. And the “Great Balls of Fire” singer found his love life back in the news this year after he married his seventh wife, his 62-year-old caregiver Judith Brown. The couple tied the knot on March 9 in Natchez, Mississippi. Coincidentally (or not), his new wife was previously married to Lewis’ second cousin Rusty Brown … who happens to be the brother of Lewis’ first wife, Myra Gale Brown, who divorced Brown back in 1970 after 13 years of marriage. Small world!

“So You Think You Can Dance” hostess Cat Deeley headed across the pond to marry Irish comedian Patrick Kielty on September 29, but she didn’t go home to her native Britain to do it. Instead, the couple wed in a secret ceremony at St. Isidore's College Church in Rome in front of 60 guests. “I'm having a fabulous time!” Kielty, 41, recently told Us Weekly of married life.

Country singer Jake Owen headed back to his hometown of Vero Beach, Florida, on May 7, when he said “I do” to model Lacey Buchanan in a sunrise ceremony on the water in front of 30 guests. The couple followed the nuptials with brunch at a nearby hotel. On Thanksgiving Day, 30-year-old Owen and 22-year-old Buchanan marked another milestone when they welcomed daughter Olive Pearl.

It's a real-life reality show romance ... that actually led to marriage! Former "The Bachelorette" contestant Ashley Herbert and the lucky fellow she gave her final rose to, J.P. Rosenbaum, tied the knot in Pasadena, California, on December 1. Fittingly, several “Bachelor” and “Bachelorette” alums including Emily Maynard, Trista and Ryan Sutter, and Jillian Harris attended the (televised) nuptials officiated by none other than host Chris Harrison.

After dating for just five months, 25-year-old Mumford & Sons frontman Marcus Mumford proposed to “Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps” actress Carey Mulligan in August of 2012 ... and she obviously said yes! The couple wed on April 21 in Somerset, England, in front of family and friends including Colin Firth, Sienna Miller, and Jake Gyllenhaal.

Chad "Ochocinco" Johnson probably wanted to omit the phrase “to be faithful to you alone, as long as we both shall live” from his wedding vows. The former Miami Dolphins wide receiver married reality star Evelyn Lozada in a lavish Miami ceremony on the Fourth of July, while the cameras rolled for their VH1 show, “Ev and Ocho.” Unfortunately, like the patriotic holiday, his marriage ended in fireworks. On August 11, Johnson was arrested on domestic violence charges for allegedly head-butting his wife following an argument they had about his infidelities. Their made-for-TV marriage was annulled 41 days later.

Lady Antebellum songbird Hillary Scott got more than “Just a Kiss” when she penned the award-winning ballad about her romance with her then-boyfriend, Chris Tyrrell. After a six-month engagement and a Grammy award, the 25-year-old married the man of her dreams at a surprise wedding in upstate New York on January 7. Scott – who looked ethereal in a custom-designed, lace mermaid gown by Vera Wang – shared the happy news with her fans in a video on her website. “We got married, and we just wanted you to hear it from us first,” she gushed. “We're so excited to be starting our life together.”

Talk about romancing under the radar. Fashion model Agyness Deyn and “Gangster Squad” star Giovanni Ribisi had apparently been dating “awhile” (behind the public’s back!) before getting hitched at the Los Angeles County Registrar’s Office in late June – a feat not easily accomplished in Tinseltown. Not surprisingly, details on their nuptials are scarce, but the Vogue stunner’s sister tweeted a cute pic of the newlyweds with a caption saying, “Cat's out of the bag! Congratulations to my sister and mi sic new bro in law Giovanni. Freakin love them so much!"

Kings of Leon bassist Jared Followill tied the knot with model Martha Patterson on October 29 at Front Porch Farms in Charlotte, Tennessee. The young couple, both 25, couldn’t contain their excitement about their big day, and immediately hit up Twitter after the ceremony. While Patterson quickly switched her Twitter name to Martha Followill, the rocker tweeted: "Aaaaaand I'm married. Happiest man in the world."

After announcing their engagement in November, Stanley Tucci and literary agent Felicity Blunt quietly exchanged vows in early August before hosting a star-studded weekend reception in London several weeks later. Their A-list pals, including best man Steve Buscemi and maid of honor Emily Blunt, made the trip across the pond to attend the ceremony held at Middle Temple Hall followed by the reception at L’Anima restaurant. The bride – who wore a classic Nanette Lepore gown – can thank her little sister for her wedded bliss: Emily played cupid for the pair after starring alongside the 51-year-old actor in the hit flick, “The Devil Wears Prada.”

Though “J. Edgar” actor Josh Lewis had originally announced he’d be marrying girlfriend Jessica Ciencin Henriquez, a writer, over Christmas, the couple bumped up their wedding by quite a bit when Lewis, 41, and his 27-year-old expectant bride tied the knot on St. Patrick’s Day at the Conservatory Garden in New York’s Central Park. The couple became parents to son Noah Rev Maurer just a few months later, on June 29.

Jesse Williams, who portrays Dr. Jackson Avery on “Grey’s Anatomy," married his girlfriend of five years, Aryn Drake-Lee, during a romantic evening ceremony in Los Angeles on September 1. Williams, who met his wife “pre-Hollywood” while he was still working as a schoolteacher, gushed to USA Today in 2010 that his sweetie has always been in it for the long haul. "She's been with me through all different facets of my career. She's stuck with me through thick and thick and thick and thin. We know each other in and out."

After welcoming their son, Antonio III, in May 2011, hunky actor Antonio Sabato Jr. and singer-songwriter Cheryl Moana Marie said their “I dos” in an intimate sunset ceremony on Anini Beach on the island of Kauai on September 25. Marie, who grew up on the lush Hawaiian island, stunned in an off-the-rack gown and a sparkly pair of Tom Ford for Gucci heels, while Sabato and his little man opted for white linen pants and shirts. During the 18-guest reception, Marie’s sister, Sharla, performed a traditional hula dance for the happy couple. "It was a dance to send us off on our way to love," the 41-year-old told People. "Everybody was mesmerized by her."