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Who
Actress Olivia Munn and Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
How They Met
According to E! News, Munn and Rodgers met in April 2014 at the Academy of Country Music Awards in Las Vegas, where they presented the Song of the Year award together. She was 34 at the time, and was 31.
Just over a month later, they were reported to be dating.
In an interview with Conan O'Brien in early 2015, the Newsroom star said she had no clue who Rodgers was (or what he did for a living) when they first met.
"I said, 'So what do you do?' And he said, 'Oh I play football.'" Munn remembered. "'Cool. What college?' And he's like, 'Oh, no. I play professional.' And I was like, 'Cool, what position?' 'Quarterback.' 'Cool.'"
But she was less focused on the football of it all.
"All I saw was that he was like really attractive. I didn't really care what he did. I was like you are such a big man!"
Why We Loved Them
It seemed (from the outside at least), that these were two people willing to do whatever it took to be together.
Munn described making "concessions" with work in order to spend more time with Rodgers.
"There's a lot of traveling, a lot of driving, and then you're just really happy with the decisions that you make. And for me, it comes at a time in my life when I end up having to say no to some work because I gotta be somewhere else," she told E! News in late 2014.
Meanwhile, Munn was helping Rodgers adjust to life in the limelight.
"Olivia is very comfortable in her own skin and comfortable with the attention she's received because of some of the projects she's worked on," the football player told ESPN. "And I think being with her has allowed me to conserve some of that energy so I'm not as much … In the past, I was very private, and now I'm more comfortable with my celebrity and with the fame that comes from being one of the top players. And that's made every part of my life [better]. Obviously, having more energy for those other parts, it's made those parts better."
And Rodgers was motivating Munn, too.
"My boyfriend's healthiness inspires me," the actress told Good Housekeeping in 2015. "Aaron is different than every other man I've ever met ... Everything a good person can be, he is. He's in such great shape, and especially lately, he's been eating so well and working out. Having somebody in your life like that is so motivating."
It all sounded very romantic — kismet, even.
When They Peaked
In a 2014 interview with the New York Post, Munn revealed that Rodgers had bought her a ring — but not that kind.
Munn explained that she'd worn the emerald ring on loan from the jeweler to a premiere and Rodgers had heard her tell her stylist that she was "obsessed" with it. He then surprised her by purchasing the ring for her. "It’s not that kind of ring, by the way," she clarified, denying it was an engagement ring. "It’s not the special ring. I mean, it’s a very special ring, but it is not the special ring.”
Pretty clever for a man who "throws balls for a living."
Speaking of rings, though, media speculation about an engagement ran rampant for about a calendar year.
After OK! reported a false story about Rodgers proposing, Munn set the record straight by posting a text exchange with her mother to Instagram.
"Hey why don't you tell me first?" Munn's mom messaged her, presumably after seeing the reports.
"Oh my gosh Mom no," the actress responded. "You know you shouldn't believe gossip on the internet. If I was engaged, I promise you'd be like the 8th person to know. Maybe 9th. But definitely way before the internet."
The rumor mill began churning once more in early 2017 after Munn was photographed wearing a ruby and diamond ring on her left ring finger.
Still, neither party ever confirmed an engagement.
The Breakup
In April 2017, People confirmed that Munn and Rodgers had broken up.
"They have amicably ended their relationship of three years," a source told the magazine, adding that the couple "remains close friends and wish nothing but the best for each other moving forward."
That August, Rodgers opened up about the split to ESPN.
"When you are living out a relationship in the public eye, it's definitely ... it's difficult," he explained. "It has some extra constraints, because you have other opinions about your relationship, how it affects your work and, you know, just some inappropriate connections." Alluding to how some fans pegged the Packers' losses on Rodgers's relationship with Munn, he added, "They're such misogynists, right?"
Some speculated that the breakup had something to do with Rodgers's family, from whom he'd been estranged for years.
When Andy Cohen asked Munn about the rumors in 2018, she clarified that she'd encouraged Rodgers to reconnect with his family.
"I just think it's really important to try to mend things in a family," she told the Andy Cohen Live host.
"At the end of the day, there are a lot of complications," she went on. "I don't think either side of the road is clean, but I do think it's not okay when you try to stand on someone's shoulders and then throw dirt in their face, which is what I think they did with him."
Munn added that she and Rodgers hadn't "really" kept in touch since their split.
Though no names were given, in 2019 Munn revealed that she'd been in an "abusive" relationship that many media outlets speculated was with Rodgers.
"We had been in calm waters for a long time, it's always calm waters. And then all of a sudden the boat capsized," she told Catt Sadler of the relationship. "I think a lot of women and men who are in relationships are like this, where you're just walking on eggshells and you're just happy anytime … you can breathe a little bit, even though you don't realize that you have a cinder block on your chest the whole time. You're taking in little sips of air."
She went on to explain that she'd deprioritized her own life for his needs.
"I had an opportunity to go on Broadway and I turned that down," she said. I had an opportunity to go to Australia to film. And he said, 'No, don't do it.' And I was [like], 'OK.' That was easy for me to do. That was so easy for me to say, 'No.' It felt good and bad to put myself second and put somebody else first."
Two years prior, Munn told Complex that she "didn't work" while dating Rodgers."I just wanted to be there to be supportive," she said.
In October 2019, Munn provided more details about her emotionally abusive relationship during an interview at Forbes' Under 30 Summit.
"I was in a relationship that was emotionally abusive," she said. "I thought you just had to gut it out," Explaining her mindset, she added, "Being a minority and a woman, it is ingrained in us to tough things out. We think life is supposed to be tough."
Where They Are Now
Munn has been dating comedian John Mulaney since spring 2021. The couple welcomed their first child, a boy named Malcolm, in November 2021.
The actress's latest film, Violet, premiered in November to positive reviews — it's now available to rent or purchase on Prime Video. She has also made appearances in Tales of The Walking Dead series.
Rodgers gave a surprising shoutout to his "fiancée" in February 2021. The fiancée in question? Actress Shailene Woodley. By the following February, however, the couple had already called it off. He has most recently been linked to a woman named Blu, who hosts a podcast called DeJa Blu.
The football player also made headlines when he contracted COVID after refusing to get vaccinated.
#TBT: Check in every Thursday as we throw it back to some of our favorite celebrity couples of all time.
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