Technically, Ant Anstead and Renée Zellweger don’t owe anyone a look inside their private romance.
Still, there’s someone the TV host would like to thank for making his meet-cute with the two-time Oscar winner happen on his show Celebrity IOU Joyride back in 2021.
“It’s funny because the show is called IOU, and it’s actually Discovery+, it’s I owe you. Thank you,” Ant told Extra in August 2021. “Thank you for your dating services. You can now remove me from your database. I can recommend you to all my single friends.”
Because it seems he and Renée are truly firing on all cylinders.
“Renée’s really lovely and it’s really nice,” the 46-year-old continued. “It’s kind of amazing.”
During the show—where celebrities thank people who made a big impact on their lives by helping create a special car just for them—Renée worked with Ant and his cohost Cristy Lee to restore a Ford Bronco and Oldsmobile 442 Convertible for brothers Jerome and JeraldCowan, who looked after her friend and publicist Nanci Ryder during her battle with ALS before her death in 2020. And the Judy star wouldn’t be surprised if Nanci somehow had a hand in bringing her and her now-boyfriend together.
“Yeah, we do joke about that,” she told Harper’s Bazaar in March 2022. “She’s always doing her best. It made me smile. It made me smile to think on this, yeah, the serendipity of it all.”
By working together on the show, Ant was able to learn more about Renée—facts like how the British accent he’d heard her use on the big screen wasn’t actually real.
“Are you telling me that Bridget Jones’sRenée Zellweger isn’t British?” the English car expert asked Cristy during the episode. “You’re like a dream crusher for me.”
Not only was he impressed with the Texas native’s acting abilities but he was also excited to see her car mechanic skills.
“We’ve got a twice Oscar winner not only crawling on her back underneath a Bronco, she’s got rust in her face, she jumped on the tool, she climbed in and out of both cars,” Ant added at another point in the show. “I’d give her a job.”
Instead, he gave her his heart. And though Ant and Renée’s relationship started on camera, they’ve since kept much of it offscreen.
“She’s a very private person,” he told Entertainment Tonight in August 2021, “and that’s really what I love about her.”
Perhaps it’s no surprise that Ant prefers to keep his love life out of the spotlight these days following his public marriage and divorce from Christina Haack. The Wheelers Dealers host and the HGTV star broke up in 2020 after less than two years of marriage, and their contentious custody battle over 5-year-old son Hudson made headlines.
However, Ant and Christina—who ended up agreeing to joint custody—have since gotten to a better place. He even stepped in and appeared on her show The Flip Off with her first ex-husband Tarek El Moussa—who’s dad to her kids Taylor, 14, and Brayden, 9—after she filed for divorce from her third husband Josh Hall, resulting in him parting ways with the show.
“Ant and I split up when Hudson was 1, and now Hudson is 5,” Christina recalled on a February episode. “Between the time of his first birthday and I would say fifth birthday, we did not communicate a lot. After Josh and I split up, I went over to his house to pick up Hudson because I was taking him to a birthday party. And when I walked up to the door, he gave me a huge hug. We hadn’t hugged in years. And he just said, ‘I’m so sorry for everything that you’re going through, and I’m here for you no matter what you need.'”
“It was a very nice moment,” she continued, “and we had a long talk after and we decided to put all the B.S. aside and be good co-parents, like Tarek and I are, for Hudson.'”
In fact, Christina—who’s now dating Christopher Larocca—appears to be happy Ant has found love again with Renée, even liking an Instagram tribute he shared in honor of the actress’s recent movie Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy.
And you only need to read some of his sweet messages to know the couple is mad about each other.
“The Movie was absolutely utterly brilliant,” he wrote on Instagram in January alongside pictures from the film’s premiere, which he attended with kids Amelie, 21, and Archie, 18, from his first marriage to Louise Storey, “and the lead actress was mesmerising and smoking HOT (I have a mega crush on her!). I’ve let the missus know she’s my hall pass….. X.”
While Ant has shared only a few posts about his relationship with Renée—detailing their past travels and marking their April anniversary—it’s safe to say she appreciates a romantic gesture and doesn’t think they should be reserved for only Valentine’s Day.
“That’s, like, amateur day,” the Chicago alum—who previously dated Jim Carrey and JackWhite, briefly wed Kenny Chesney, and was at one time romantically linked to BradleyCooper—told E! in February. “You should send notes every day. I think it’s never a bad idea to leave a sweet note.”
And as Ant and Renée enter their fourth year as a couple, they appear to be still cruising strong—with them both residing in Southern California.
“Because that’s where my fellow lives,” she explained to her Bridget Jones costar HughGrant in a January conversation for British Vogue, “and his little boy.”
In honor of Renée’s 56th birthday April 25, keep reading to see more of her sweet photos with Ant.
February 2025: No. 1 Fan
Ant expressed his excitement over the release of Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy by posting a picture of him proudly holding up a “Team Jones” sign.
“It’s incredibly moving and will touch the hearts of Bridget fans deeply!” he wrote in part of his Feb. 13, 2025 message. “I am in awe of Ren and how she gives herself fully. Sit back and enjoy…… x.”
January 2025: Movie Premiere
And though they didn’t pose for pictures together on the red carpet, Ant attended the premiere of Renée’s movie Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy in London in January 2025. In fact, the evening was a family affair as he brought his two older children Amelie and Archie from a previous relationship (Ant also shares younger son Hudson with ex-wife Christina Haack).
“Midweek movie night with the kiddos….,” he wrote on Instagram Jan. 31, 2025. “The Movie was absolutely utterly brilliant and the lead actress was mesmerising and smoking HOT (I have a mega crush on her!) I’ve let the missus know she’s my hall pass….. X.”
And Renée had to agree it was an unforgettable evening.
“It was a fun night,” the actress told E! News that February. “We all had a really good time.”
November 2024: Celebrating the “Best Human” He’s Ever Met
When the trailer for Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy dropped in November 2024, Ant couldn’t help but gush about Renée.
“The missus was busy being brilliant this summer…..” he wrote on Instagram Nov. 12, 2024 alongside the footage, “she’s a bloomin Bridget genius!”
And Ant jokingly sent a message to Renée’s costar Leo Woodall, who plays one of her love connections in the film, by writing, “Oh And Leo… we need to quiet chat down a dark alleyway… x”
However, he wasn’t the only one giving her a round of applause. When an Instagram commenter recalled a past conversation with Renée and described it as “one of the most cherished moments,” Ant replied, “I get it! she’s the best human I have ever met…..! X”
October 2023: Rare Public Sighting
The Judy star and the TV host celebrated the launch of Libby June Weintraub‘s book She Was Born: Words on Loss and Liberation with the author and her husband Stephen Weintraub in L.A..
April 2023: Two Years Together
Ant shared this photo of the two kissing on their second anniversary in April 2023.
April 2023: Couple’s Hike
He also posted this pic of the couple walking hand in hand for the occasion.
April 2023: Making Magic
And Ant called the milestone, “Two years of magic.”
January 2023: Date Night
The former Wheeler Dealers host also shared this photo of a romantic night out with the Oscar winner, writing, “Always Pause for moments of magic under twinkly lights…”
July 2022: Loved Up
“This lady,” Ant wrote on Instagram in July 2022. “Pure. Class. Ren x”
July 2022: Jet-Setting Couple
The two caught a flight out of Los Angeles together.
March 2022: PDA Alert
Ant shared this animated image of the pair sharing a sizzling kiss on Instagram.
October 2021: New Orleans Trip
“WOW there is something very special about New Orleans!” he captioned this October 2021 Instagram post. “The late night wandering, the mind blowing history this nerd loves, the architecture, the blend of cultures, the food, the people, the smells and noises! All made made better by magical company to share it with…”
April 2021: Where It All Began
“WOW! This just popped up in memories,” Ant wrote on Instagram in April 2022, alongside a pic of him and Renée on the set of Celebrity IOU: Joyride. “One year ago today! Sat on the back of a fire engine on the final day of filming having handed two amazing men a car as a thank you from Ren. Amazing what can happen in just one year…”
Following romance rumors, the two made their first public appearance (off any red carpet) the following July on the balcony of Ant’s new oceanfront home in Laguna Beach, Calif.
2021: The Show That Sparked Their Love
The two started dating soon after meeting on the set of Ant’s Discovery+ series Celebrity IOU: Joyride. However, they initially kept their relationship private.
“Everybody knows that Renée and I have become quite close because we kept it secret for a while and now, unfortunately, some pictures were taken and put out there,” Ant told E! News in August 2021. “But it was a real pleasure to work with her. She’s a super pro and she can weld.”
(E! and Peacock are both part of the NBCUniversal family).
