Relationship Goals: John Krasinski and Emily Blunt Show Us Love at First Sight Exists

Welcome to #RelationshipGoals where we’re giving the stage to the power couples we admire. From admirable long-term relationships to inspirational newlyweds, these are the couples we love and hope to take cues from in our own relationships.

John Krasinski and Emily Blunt have shared a similar trajectory in life and in love. While Krasinski began making a name for himself on The Office in 2005, Blunt landed her big break in 2006’s The Devil Wears Prada. Since then, they’ve both steadily climbed to A-list status, building impressive portfolios for themselves.

It’s not just their careers that have risen in tandem, it’s also their personal lives. That’s because, after meeting in 2008, the couple wasted no time making their relationship permanent, proving that love at first sight does indeed exist. The pair got engaged in August 2009, said “I do” in July 2010, then welcomed daughters Hazel and Violet in 2014 and 2016, respectively.

It really was love at first sight

Love at first sight isn’t just reserved for the movies — it also exists in the real world. Krasinski and Blunt knew they were destined to be together from the moment they met in 2008.

The chance encounter took place in a restaurant when Blunt and a mutual friend bumped into Krasinski, who was dining with Justin Theroux. Said friend introduced them and, as Blunt told Seth Meyers, “that was it.” She recalled, “I was in a restaurant. He was in the restaurant. I was sitting with a mutual friend. This is our romantic comedy,” she gushed. “He abandoned Justin and came over to talk to us. He did not eat. He just stood there and made me laugh.”

Krasinski was equally smitten. “It’s one of those things where, as soon as you meet someone, you kind of know,” he told Ellen DeGeneres. “I wasn’t really looking for a relationship and I was thinking I’m going to take my time in L.A., then I met her and I was so nervous. I was like, ‘Oh god, I think I’m going to fall in love with her.’ As I shook her hand I went, ‘I like you!'"

Less than a year later, they were engaged.

His love for Blunt actually began long before that, however, As the actor admitted to Glamour in 2016, he was a huge fan of The Devil Wears Prada and had seen the movie about 75 times. It's a fact that he hid from Blunt early on in their courtship, but eventually admitted.

“Later in our relationship, she asked if I had seen The Devil Wears Prada and I said, ‘Yes,’ and she said, ‘How many times?’ And I said, ‘A lot.’ She said, ‘What’s a lot?’ And I said, ‘75 times.’” He joked, “I’m lucky enough that she stayed with me and didn’t realize that she had really married her stalker!”

They take risks together

In 2018, the couple took a risk and decided to work together, playing a couple on the big screen in A Quiet Place, a film that Krasinski was also writing and directing.

Not only did they have trepidations — "I didn't want it to be like, 'Oh, how adorable. They're working together,'" Blunt told The Hollywood Reporter — but they were also warned by skeptics that the project would impact their marriage. “You go into this process not knowing what it’s going to be like. A lot of people were like, ‘You’re going to be divorced by the end of it,’ but we were so much closer,” Blunt told Cosmopolitan.

Despite all of that, the pair took the chance and it paid off because, when your relationship is as strong as theirs, you’re able to support one another and work together. As the actress told E!, she and her husband soon discovered that they “actually worked really, really well together."

Their secret? "We really trust each other. We're very honest with each other,” she said. “We sort of have a short-hand and secret language that ultimately is gonna work for us."

Audiences definitely agreed, as the flick grossed an impressive $341 million at the worldwide box office and snagged a 95% Certified Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

They complement each other

Opening up about their relationship in a rare joint interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Blunt revealed that one of their biggest keys to success is the fact that they understand each other. Working in the same industry means they can share in the absurdity of it all without judgement. Like the time when Blunt was working on Mary Poppins and Krasinski was penning his horror movie, A Quiet Place: "I'd come home and be like, 'I just danced with 30 lamplighters.’” Krasinski added, "And I'd be like, 'I just killed a child on page 10!'"

Their similarities don’t end there. As Mary Poppins director Rob Marshall told THR, "Neither of them has a jealous bone in their body. People think marriage is looking deep into each other's eyes. No, it's looking out and seeing the same life. Emily and John see the same life."

Meanwhile, Chris Pratt, who worked with Blunt on The Five-Year Engagement, echoed the same sentiment, telling the outlet, “They are a down-to-earth couple, both really fun and funny. They're caring and kind. They're always doing bits and making themselves and other people laugh."

They feel invincible together

Speaking with Modern Luxuryin 2012, Blunt opened up about why she’s so committed to keeping her personal life private and the reason is not what you might think.

“This is what I find difficult about talking about my marriage: It’s hard to sum up something that’s so vital and means everything to you in a sound bite,” she said. “Do you know what I mean? All I can say is that it’s an effing blast. It’s just great, and I’m so happy.”

The following year, she again got candid about her relationship with Krasinski, telling InStyle, “Meeting John really changed my life. When I feel the support that I have from him, I feel invincible. There’s someone behind you on your good days, and someone in front of you on your bad days.”

They keep the romance alive

Over a decade into their relationship and two kids later, Blunt and Krasinski still make it a point to keep the romance alive.

Whether it’s looking adorable together on red carpets (Elledubbed them “the chicest couple on the Golden Globes red carpet” in 2019), stepping out for date nightor taking part in some serious PDA, the pair have no qualms about keeping their flame burning bright.

A perfect example came at the 2019 Critics' Choice Awards when their film, A Quiet Place, won the award for Best Sci-Fi/Horror Movie. As the cast and crew took to the stage, Krasinski thanked everyone involved, as well as the fans, then added, "I got to make a movie about a love story and a love letter to my kids. I got to do it with the love of my life by my side, so I'm pretty sure it doesn't get much better than that. Thank you so much."

Just as the telecast was about to cut to commercial, the pair were caught hugging sweetly before walking off-stage.

Other inspiring love stories:

• Joe Jonas and Sophie Turner Prove That Succeeding Separately Means Thriving Together
• Neil Patrick Harris and David Burtka’s Romance Was Built on Open Communication
• How Katy Perry and Orlando Bloom’s Secret Romance Bloomed