Ben Stiller knew early on that Christine Taylor was the one for him to spend rest of the life with.
The Zoolander star recently opened up about the moment he realized his now-wife was special, recalling that the feeling came to him naturally.
“It just came to me,” Stiller, 59, told The Wall Street Journal in a new interview.
“I was like, ‘Oh, I’m really happy being with this person and we have fun together.’ It just felt like an instinctual sort of thing.”
The Severance creator met Taylor, 54, in 1999, and their connection was instant. The pair tied the knot less than a year later and have shared both personal and professional chemistry ever since.
“Our shared sense of humour is the key to our off-screen relationship,” Stiller said.
“When you’re with somebody for many years, and you go through the ups and downs of life, a sense of humor is just the most important thing, being able to laugh together and want to hang out together.”
The couple has appeared together in several hit films over the years, including Zoolander, Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story, and Tropic Thunder.
Reflecting on their on-screen dynamic, Stiller added, “When we work on screen together, it’s the same thing: she really makes me laugh.”
Stiller and Taylor share two children, daughter Ella Olivia and son Quinlin Dempsey, born in 2002 and 2005.
After nearly two decades of marriage, they announced their separation in 2017, only to rekindle their relationship five years later.
“I’m so grateful for it, and I think not that many people do come back together when they separate,” Stiller told The New York Times earlier this year.
“There’s nothing like that, when you come back. You have so much more appreciation for what you have, because we know we could not have it.”
In the same WSJ interview, the actor reflected on his long career, from writing Severance for Apple TV+ to working with Ariana Grande in his upcoming comedy Focker-in-Law and making a cameo in one of SZA’s music videos.
He also laughed about his “brief tenure” on Saturday Night Live, where he appeared in only four episodes.
On the other hand, Stiller also shared his believes recently regarding comedy, that it still has a responsibility to challenge boundaries, even as the world becomes more cautious about what can and can’t be said.
In a new interview with Radio Times, the Severance director reflected on how humour has evolved in today’s political and cultural climate, acknowledging that comedians face new challenges when it comes to expressing themselves freely.
“We live in a world where taking chances with comedy is more challenging,” Stiller said.
“You’re seeing that front and center in our country. But I think it’s important that comedians keep doing what they’re doing, speaking truth to power and being free to say what they want. That’s the most important thing.”
Known for pushing comedic boundaries throughout his career, Stiller’s comments highlight his belief that humour should continue to question norms rather than play it safe.
