Yahoo Movies Chris Robinson Offered to Buy Kate Hudson a $4,000 Coat on Their First Date
SGranitz/WireImage Kate Hudson, Chris Robinson
Who: Golden Globe-winning actress Kate Hudson, 42, and Grammy-nominated musician and co-founder of The Black Crowes, Chris Robinson, 54.
How They Met: Hudson and Robinson fell hard and fast. They met in May 2000 at a party in N.Y.C. and moved in together four days later.
"I'd never been in love before," Robinson told The Guardian the following year. "We went to Central Park and we walked and talked all afternoon, and when she went to the rest room, I thought, 'Fuck me, life is never going to be the same again' … She moved in that weekend."
"It happened really fast," Hudson, who was 20 at the time, told Cosmopolitan. "We were attached at the hip, and we still are. We instantly liked being with each other."
Newsmakers
Hudson recounted their Central Park date to Vanity Fair. "He took me for a walk in the park and held my hand, and I thought, My God, I'm already in love with a man I don't think anybody's going to understand!"
Soon, Hudson was wearing a diamond engagement ring, though she'd "get so nervous about people seeing it." In October 2000 she told Rolling Stone that though she was wearing a blinding ring on the appropriate finger, she wasn't "getting married any time soon," adding, "Chris just really wanted to give me something that said, 'I want to spend the rest of our lives together.'"
RELATED: TBT: Was Kate Hudson and Alex Rodriguez's Relationship All a Publicity Stunt?
She echoed that sentiment in a Vanity Fair profile, adding, "We're totally committed to each other, and that will never change unless something horrible happens."
Less than three months later, Hudson and Robinson wed on New Year's Eve in a 19th century-themed ceremony held at Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell's Aspen ranch.
Three years later, the couple welcomed their first (and only) child together: son Ryder Russell.
Why We Loved Them: dressing alike, being weird, love, thoughts on monogamy
You know how couples sort of start to look alike after a while? Well, no one expected sunny 20-year-old Kate Hudson would evolve into a rock star 12 years her senior. And yet …
Evan Agostini / Getty Images
Mario Magnani/Getty Images
Riccardo S. Savi/WireImage
"He was rebellious … thoughtfully rebellious. He doesn't fit into any boxes," Hudson told Cosmopolitan when asked why she was initially attracted to Robinson. "And it was nice to be with somebody who liked to hold court. It's nice to be with somebody who likes to take over a room."
And yes, they shared clothing. "I love his old clothes from the '90s," Hudson admitted. "He weighed about five pounds in his 20s, and they fit me now."
This was not your typical closed-door celebrity couple. Like Hudson's very brand, her relationship with Robinson felt authentic and honest — the subtext of every interview reading:"nothing to hide here!"
At 23, Hudson was dispensing marital advice, proclaiming that she and Robinson "will never think of not being with each other."
"I get kind of disappointed in people who don't take marriage seriously," she told The Independent. "You shouldn't make the decision rashly. For us, we will never think of not being with each other. I'm done. I am happy. I can't wait to grow old. I can't wait to retire."
Robinson appeared to be just as enthralled by his partner as Hudson was. "She has such a deep soul," he told Vanity Fair. "I hate to spend any time away from her. I've never experienced something so easy."
Still, there were noted valleys. In 2003, Hudson told People that the early days of their relationship were "volatile."
Scott Nelson/AFP via Getty Images
"We were so in love and passionate, and then we would just hate each other and throw stuff around, and then we would travel to Paris for a week," she explained. Yes, same.
In 2006, about a year before news of Hudson and Robinson's impending divorce was made public, the actress told Access Hollywood that she didn't think monogamy was realistic. When asked whether she thought her husband cheated (inspired by mom Goldie Hawn's quote: "All men cheat"), Hudson said that if he did she wouldn't want to know.
RELATED: TBT: Kate Hudson and Dax Shepard Said They Were "Super Compatible"
"If for some reason that's what he has to go do, I just don't want to know," she told Billy Bush. "As long as things are good in our house, please just don't get caught … To me there is nothing more attractive when I see my husband finding another woman attractive."
When They Peaked: Hudson and Robinson were very candid about money, and how much of it they had …
On their very first date, they ventured into Barneys (a natural first date destination) and Robinson offered to buy Hudson a coat she was interested in. It was $4,000. She ultimately bought it herself, as "it was only our first date." Perhaps more of a second date gift?
"Somebody asked her the other day what her favorite accessory was," Robinson told Vanity Fair, joking, "I'll tell you her favorite accessory: a platinum American Express credit card!"
The Breakup: In August 2006, Hudson's rep confirmed that she and Robinson had separated.
A year later, Hudson opened up about the divorce in an interview with Harper's Bazaar, emphasizing that they were both committed to raising their son.
"[Divorce is] really, really hard. And for both Chris and me, our main focus is, and was, Ryder. And happy parents, happy baby," she said, "And therefore, I love Chris to pieces. He's my first huge love. I spent seven years with Chris. I was 20 when I met him. We still talk every day. He still cracks me up. And Ryder feels that."
In 2008, Hudson told The Daily Mail that she and Robinson "had no animosity" in their breakup. "Chris and I divorced for the right reasons – we just didn't work. But we remain extremely close."
Kevin Winter/Getty Images
And it appeared to be true … Later that year, in an interview with Cosmopolitan (in which Robinson himself made a cameo), Hudson insisted that she "could never look at [our divorce] as a mistake," going as far as to call it "the best thing that ever happened to us."
Where They Are Now:
Hudson went on to date Owen Wilson, Dax Shepard, and Alex Rodriguez before welcoming son Bingham with Muse frontman Matt Bellamy. The actress is currently dating musician Danny Fujikawa, with whom she shares daughter Rani, 2.
Next up for the actress is thriller Mona Lisa and the Blood Moon and Shriver opposite Michael Shannon.
Robinson wed Allison Bridges in 2009 and welcomed daughter Cheyenne that same year. He and Bridges split in 2018. He married Camille Johnson in January 2020.
#TBT: Check in every Thursday as we throw it back to some of our favorite celebrity couples of all time.
