Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Sam Taylor-Johnson’s complete relationship timeline | Age gap, how did they meet, children explainer

Director Sam Taylor-Johnson and actor Aaron Taylor-Johnson are no doubt one of Hollywood’s power couples.

Just like the plot of a Hollywood movie, they met under controversial circumstances. The Fifty Shades of Grey director was 42 and he was 18 when they first cast eyes on one another, but one year later they were engaged. 

Married for almost 10 years now, Sam, now 57, and Aaron, 34, are still going strong. 

Most recently, they stepped out together at the premiere for Aaron’s latest film, Kraven The Hunter.

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The duo even turned the event into a rare family occasion, with Sam’s daughters Angelica, 26, and Jessie, 18 – whom she welcomed with ex-husband Jay Jopling – joining the couple on the red carpet. 

But, despite the happy family we see today, their relationship hasn’t been without its bumps along the way, accompanied by plenty of public scrutiny.

Lets take a look back at how their love story unfolded. 

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2008: Sam Taylor-Wood and Aaron Johnson meet on the set of Nowhere Boy, a biopic based on the early life of John Lennon. Sam, then 42, directs the film and Aaron, then 18, is cast as The Beatles legend.

And while the couple feels instant chemistry during filming, they do not act on their feelings. Sam is in the midst of divorcing art mogul Jay Jopling, her husband of 11 years and father of her daughters, Angelica, now 24, and Jessie Phoenix, now 15.

“We were very professional through the entire film,” Aaron later tells Harper’s Bazaar in 2019. “No funny business at all.”

But he does recall being drawn to Sam’s creativity and vividly remembers the first time they saw each other. 

“I remember it very, very clearly,” he told the magazine. “I know exactly what she was wearing. This white shirt that she still has, that I love. It definitely changed my life, though not in the way I expected.”

In Nowhere Boy, Sam’s daughters Angelica, then 15, and Jessie, then six, made cameos in the film as Lennon’s younger sisters.

September 2008: Sam and her husband, Jay Jopling, are officially divorced and soon she embarks on a relationship with Aaron. But it seems the actor was trying to woo his future bride even before her divorce was finalised. 

“As soon as we finished [filming], he told me he was going to marry me. We had never been on a date, or even kissed,” Sam recalls to Harper’s Bazaar.

October 2009: Aaron follows through with his vow to make Sam his wife.

“A year to the minute after we met, exactly one year to the minute, I got down on one knee and asked her to marry me,” he later reveals. 

The couple publicly announce their engagement at the premier of Nowhere Boy. Of the happy news, Aaron says their family and friends are “really lovely and supportive”, with Sam revealing, “They know how intensely we feel.”

While the road to engagement was short, the couple don’t actually marry until three years later. 

January 2010: Three months after getting engaged, the couple’s rep announces the famous pair are expecting their first baby together. 

“We can confirm that Sam is pregnant with her and Aaron’s first child. Both are very, very happy,” their rep says in a statement at the time.

July 2010: The couple welcome their first baby together, a little girl they name Wylda Rae.   

“Sam Taylor-Wood and Aaron Johnson are happy to announce the birth of their daughter Wylda Rae, who was born yesterday, July 7, in London,” reads a statement from the couple.  

Aaron’s Kick-Ass co-star Christopher Mintz-Plasse confirms the birth on Twitter.

“Crazier news. Aaron Johnson’s baby was born!! So exciting!” he tweets.

October 2010: Months after the birth, Sam tells Harper’s Bazaar that family was always on the agenda for her young partner. 

“Aaron, almost before anything started between us, said he wanted kids. He was very clear about wanting a family,” she says. 

The director also gives an insight into her new home life with Aaron, telling the publication the couple hardly go out and prefer quiet nights at home. 

“We hardly go out now, it’s just us. You know what I used to be like. Aaron has brought a set of values I didn’t even know I was looking for, family values,” she says.

“He is more grounded. He has been getting work offers which he has turned down because he wants to be here for the crucial beginning months of Wylda’s life.”

January 2012: The couple welcome their second child together, another baby girl. 

Romy Hero is born in London, where the couple live an £11-million townhouse (approx. $14 million) in Primrose Hill that they bought in 2009.

“Both mother and daughter are well,” reads a statement shared with People. 

The baby is Sam’s fourth daughter — she shares two with her ex-husband and now two with Aaron. 

June 2012: Three years and two children later, Sam and Aaron make their union official.

The couple marry in a church service in Somerset, England, before celebrating with family and friends at the town’s country retreat, Babington House. 

While the details are kept under wraps — a rep says in a statement, “There will be no further comment or detail released” — according to Hello! guests included Elton John and Beyoncé. 

The outlet also reports Sam’s gown was designed by Sarah Burton, the same designer who dressed Kate Middleton, the Duchess of Cambridge, for the royal wedding in 2011.

2015: Following their wedding, Sam and Aaron officially change their surnames to the double-barrelled Taylor-Johnson.

Aaron later tells The Guardian that he wanted to take part of Sam’s surname because it was important to him.

He has even had to fight studios to have the double-barrelled surname appear in movie posters. While he lost the battle with bosses for the Savages poster in 2012 — it was too late for it to be altered — the actor put his foot down for the period drama Anna Karenina before it came out in late 2012. 

“I said, ‘I want it changed! This is important,'” he said after getting his way. “It felt beautiful. It felt right.” 

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2017: Sam gives a rare interview about the 23-year age gap between her and her husband. 

In a candid chat with The Hollywood Reporter, the acclaimed director says the age gap is still an issue even almost 10 years on from when they started dating. 

“If I gave a second thought to other people, I would be the unhappiest person, probably still in a miserable marriage,” she says. “People like to talk about it. I’m like, ‘Yeah, but it works better than my last marriage.’ It’s lasted longer than a lot of my friends’ marriages.”

2019: The couple give their first joint interview with The Telegraph UK and reveal why their age gap doesn’t bother them.

“I knew instantly with Sam that I’d found my soulmate,” he tells the newspaper. “I knew instantly that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with this person …  When I met Sam I’d already lived a life far beyond that of most of my contemporaries — I didn’t relate to anyone my age. I just feel that we’re on the same wavelength.”

Aaron says there’s not much he can do about the criticism surrounding their age gap, but he chooses to focus on their relationship and ignore the noise.

“All that is my personal life, it’s sacred to me and it’s beautiful. But there is a lot of negativity around from other people,” Aaron says. “That’s their problem and their issues and however they perceive life. I live my life to its fullest and I operate from my instincts and from my heart, and I try to be as open as possible.”

Sam feels the same way, saying, “I can’t dwell on what other people think or say. With Aaron it just literally felt like we were so connected, straight away. I didn’t know what it was then — we were connected when we were working and it was professional, and that connection grew more powerful as time went on and never diminished. And it’s the same today as it was then.”

2021: If their love wasn’t permanent enough, the duo decided to seal the deal with some matching ink.

Sam and Aaron visited celebrity tattoo artist Dr. Woo to get matching tattoos of each others names.

2022: To celebrate a decade of love, the couple decided to renew their wedding vows on June 21.

“Yesterday was the most beautiful day, summer solstice, our 10th anniversary… we renewed our vows to one another and confessed our love in front of our nearest and dearest friends and family it was a celebration of love and joy,” Aaron wrote on Instagram alongside a picture of the pair kissing.

“A decade of marriage. It was a magical unforgettable day and the sun did not stop shining on us both.. we are blessed beyond belief. ❤️ Sammy you are my love, my life, my soulmate, my wife, my world! ❤️”

Sam posted her own tribute, sharing some photos from the ceremony to her Instagram story along with the caption, ””10 glorious years. My incredible husband, father to all 4 girls. I love you, I love you, I love you. love conquers all.”

2023: In an interview with Esquire, Aaron once again defended his controversial relationship, this time by saying he always knew he would be a dad young – long before he ever met Sam.

“I knew I was going to be a young father. I knew I was going to have many kids,” he told the publication.

He added that he loves the “everyday stuff” when it comes to parenting.

”Getting my kids ready in the mornings, taking them to school and activities,” he said. “That’s plenty. That feeds my soul.”

2024: In an interview with Rolling Stone, Aaron once again called out the criticism on he and Sam’s age gap.

“What you gotta realize is that what most people were doing in their twenties, I was doing when I was 13,” he said.

“You’re doing something too quickly for someone else? I don’t understand that. What speed are you supposed to enjoy life at? It’s bizarre to me.”