For ten years Jeffrey Dean Morgan has been playing anti-hero Negan on The Walking Dead and its various franchises, including most recently The Walking Dead: Dead City, the first sequel to the original series.
In late April he flew to France for the premiere of the new season, and he was joined by wife Hilarie Burton, who TV fans will recognize as Peyton Sawyer from One Tree Hill.
"To have my family there made it even more special," Jeffrey told Variety of the special occasion, which saw him and Hilarie joined by their two children.
"I love my kids and my wife so much. My wife had never been to Cannes; my daughter had never walked a carpet in her life, and, boy, she took to it like a fish to water. Both my kids did. I was convinced after day one that [my son] Gus was going to walk away with a multi-picture deal from Paramount, he was just so cool."
© FilmMagicHow did Jeffrey Dean Morgan meet his wife?
Jeffrey and Hilarie met on May 8 2009 when they were set up on a blind date by mutual friends Jensen and Danneel Ackles.
In 2021 Hilarie recalled that fateful date, posting on Instagram to share that "twelve years ago today, @jensenackles and @danneelackles512 made me go on a blind date".
"The smokin hot @jeffreydeanmorgan showed up and it was game over," she continued, honoring their time together writing: "Here's to being crazy kids, living all over the country, giving birth to two doppelgängers, getting gray hair and still being totally inappropriate....together."
© Corbis via Getty ImagesWelcoming their children
Less than a year after that successful first date the two actors welcomed their first child, son Augustus, now 15. Born on March 14, 2010, they confirmed his birth months later in an interview when Hilarie shared that they were "really happy, and we're a very good team".
"I want to protect them like a mama wolf should," she added, refusing to share his name or birthday at the time.
Jeffrey later revealed his son is named after Augustus McCrae in Lonesome Dove.
Eight years later the pair welcomed their second child, daughter George Virginia, via a natural birth that saw Jeffrey help deliver the baby.
"Hey y’all... baby gal morgan is spectacular. We just respecting her wishes for laying low a bit longer," Jeffrey wrote on X. "We super appreciate all the well wishes n stuff (sic). Thank you. Xojdhilgusandbabygal."
"George started coming and the midwife moved aside. And I just went in and grabbed her by her little cheeks and had her out in 3 seconds," he told Jimmy Kimmel.
Their daughter was named after an episode of Bonanza titled "A Girl Named George".
"I loved the name and Hilarie loved the name. We got a weird western theme going on," he said, referencing Augustus' name.
© FilmMagicWedding bells
Ten years after they met the pair walked down the aisle on October 5 2019 in an intimate ceremony in upstate New York where they live.
"We've lived as husband and wife for a decade. We've built a family, and a farm and found our community," she wrote, sharing the news with fans on social media and denying previous reports that they had already tied the knot.
"Here’s the God’s honest fact: From the moment I met @jeffreydeanmorgan, he was my husband. Rather than make vows right out of the gate, we lived them. For over ten years. The good times and the bad," she wrote.
"Standing up there with our children at our sides - celebrating all that has been - was bliss. I love you Jeffrey. I love our intimate group of friends and family who joined us. I love the various circles of loved ones who have supported us over the years. It was private and magical and everything I dreamed."
Partners on screen
In 2015, after six years together the pair decided to work together on a project with Hilarie joined Jeffrey in his TV sci-fi series Extant with Halle Berry.
In 2021 Hilarie also made an appearance on The Walking Dead, playing his character Negan's late wife Lucille in a flashback scene.
That same year their son Gus also made his acting debut as a young zombie.
"My dude. Me, @hilarieburton and George … THATS MY BOY!! We are super proud of Gusy Dean," Jeffrey wrote on social media.
"Thanks to @amcthewalkingdead and @gnicotero for making a dream come true… a damn hoot!"
Business owners
They also became business owners with long time friend Paul Rudd and his wife Julie, when the four purchased Samuel's Sweet Shop, a local candy store in Rhinebeck, New York, following the owner's passing.
"We moved to upstate New York. The first guy I met in this town called Rhinebeck was this Ira, and he owned this candy store," Jeffrey shared with fans.
"He passed away a couple years ago, and Paul and I had been friends for a while and we just didn't want it to turn into a smoothie stand or something. It had been there since the early '90s, so we were like, 'Yeah, let's pool our money together and get a candy store,' so now we're the proud owners of Samuel's Sweet Shop."
Where does Jeffrey Dean Morgan live?
The pair are raising their children in Rhinebeck, New York and in 2018 they purchased Mischief Farm, a 100-acre working farm, home to many animals including Jack and Diane, an internet-famous donkey and emu who were both abandoned by the same owners and formed a close bond which meant they had to be adopted together.
"They have a very nice paddock with lots of green grass. Jeffrey is building them a new heated enclosure, even though the one they have now is very nice. They will be spoiled,” Jennifer Gordon, executive director of Carolina Waterfowl Rescue, said at the time.
"I think Diane sees Jack as a mate since she ‘drums’ for him,” Jennifer told People, referencing the emu mating call.
"When we separated them trying to load Jack into the trailer, she was frantic. She was drumming for him, and that’s a way that emus call to their mates. Jack is very protective of her."
