Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson's Relationship Timeline

It will be tough to find someone who isn’t a fan of Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson — and that’s because that person probably doesn’t exist. Not only are Tom and Rita supposedly two of the nicest people in the world, but their marriage is filled with nothing but love and kindness.

The happy couple met in 1981 and have been inseparable ever since. Rita was right by her man when he reeled in his two Academy Awards and countless other accolades for his incredible work. During an April 2020 appearance on The Kelly Clarkson Show, the “Throw Me a Party” singer revealed what drew her to her hubby in the first place.

“I love a good storyteller. So anybody who could tell a good story, I’m down with that,” she gushed to the American Idol alum about Tom’s ability to keep her interested. “I love that. He makes me laugh all the time. He’s a great storyteller.”

Rita also loves the fact that Tom is supportive of her career. When the Sleepless in Seattle star changed gears from acting to singing, her beloved had her back all the way. “Go, go, go!” she exclusively told Closer Weekly of what the Toy Story actor told her when he learned she wanted to be a musician. “You just get to a certain point in your life, which is like, I don’t care. I don’t care. I’m doing what I love to do.”

“I prayed to God every day for years that he’d bring me somebody I loved who loved me in the same way. And he brought me Tom,” the Runaway Bride actress once said of the man who even stuck by her through her tough times, including her 2015 breast cancer battle.

“I was so blown away by the care he gave me,” she added. Today, the pair is still going strong and they share two kids — Chet and Truman.

Scroll through the gallery below and take yourself on a journey by checking out Tom and Rita’s relationship timeline!

Tom and Rita meet, 1981

The duo’s lovely romance kicked off in 1981 when they met on the set of the Oscar winner’s sitcom, Bosom Buddies. Rita just happened to be guest-starring in an episode about a video dating service.

“Rita and I just looked at each other and — kaboing — that was that,” Tom recalled to GQ about their spark. “I asked Rita if it was the real thing for her, and it just couldn’t be denied.”

First movie together, 1985

Four years after first meeting, Tom and Rita shared a set again, this time in the movie Volunteers with John Candy. “When we first looked at each other there was definitely a kind of like, ‘Hey, this is the place!’ I felt that, anyway,” Tom once told Entertainment Tonight of their connection. “I think the end result is that we got married for all the right reasons.”

Let the dating begin, 1986

Tom and Rita began dating and took their relationship into the public eye when they showed up together to the film premiere of Three Amigos in 1986. At the time, the A-lister was separated from his first wife, Samantha Lewes, who he shared son Colin and daughter Elizabeth with.

Their divorce was finalized in 1987 and 15 years after that, Samantha died in 2002 after a battle with bone cancer.

Married! 1988

Tom and Rita tied the knot on April 30, 1988. However, Rita once revealed her mom was shocked her daughter said I do to the actor. “She could not believe that I didn’t marry a Greek man,” the actress told Us Weekly, adding Tom did join the Greek Orthodox Church before they got hitched.

“But [my parents] thought he looked enough Greek and that he could blend in!” she added.

Their first child arrives, 1990

Two years after tying the knot, Tom and Rita welcomed their first child together, Chester “Chet” Marlon Hanks, on August 4, 1990. Like his parents, the young man has pursued acting, as he has appeared in popular shows like Shameless, Empire and Curb Your Enthusiasm.

Chet does more than just act too. He is also a rapper.

The Oscar dedication, 1994

After winning his first Oscar for his role in Philadelphia, Tom went ahead and took the stage, and of course, thanked his wife. “I could not be standing here without that undying love that was just sung about by, not Bruce Springsteen, but Neil Young. And I have that in a lover that is so close to fine we should all be able to experience such heaven right here on earth,” he said during his speech. So sweet!

They go on tour together, 2016

After releasing her self-titled album in 2016, Rita went on tour and brought her hubby along. “We’ve gone all over the world. We’ve taken our family. We’ve gotten to live in cities that you normally wouldn’t get to live in and become a normal person and going to the market and finding your favorite coffee shop. Just pretending that you’re a local and that’s really great. You don’t feel rushed,” she told E! News.