Who Is Chris Harrison's Wife? All About Lauren Zima

The former Bachelor host and the Entertainment Tonight correspondent wed in October 2023

Chris Harrison spent nearly two decades helping others find love on The Bachelor, and now the former host has found it himself with his wife, Lauren Zima.

In October 2023, the couple got married during an intimate ceremony in Napa Valley, California. The wedding was followed by a "blowout bash" in Austin a few weeks later.

Harrison and Zima, a correspondent for Entertainment Tonight, met in 2015 but only began dating in August 2018. After three years together, Harrison popped the question in October 2021.

“I didn’t know what real partnership was until Chris,” Zima told PEOPLE following the couple's nuptials. “He is my teammate and supports me in everything. When you have someone tell you, ‘I want to make your dreams come true. I want to do what I can to make you happy.’ That level of selflessness from someone is mind-blowing and is what partnership should be."

So, who is Chris Harrison’s wife? Here’s everything to know about Lauren Zima and her relationship with the former Bachelor host.

She is a graduate of the University of Missouri-Columbia

Zima was born and raised in the Chicago suburbs, and her mom still lives there today.

When she graduated high school, she attended the University of Missouri-Columbia where she majored in magazine journalism, per her LinkedIn. Following her graduation, Zima earned her master’s degree in broadcast journalism, also from Mizzou.

She's an advocate for grief awareness

While she was in graduate school in 2010, Zima’s father died. On Father’s Day in 2020, the ET anchor penned a sweet tribute to her father on Instagram, explaining the depth of grief she felt after his death.

Zima moved to Los Angeles just six months after losing her dad, where she "did not know a single soul." She struggled in the beginning, not knowing how to process her grief while also attempting to make friends.

“When I tried to meet new people and make new friends, I was always hiding my raw, deep pain right under the surface, and was still processing so much,” she recalled. “I learned if I told people too soon after meeting them, they became uncomfortable. I don’t blame them for not knowing what to say, but I started saying less, and bottling things up more.”

In the years since, Zima has dedicated time to volunteering at Experience Camps, which helps grieving children who have lost parents or siblings.

She is a correspondent for Entertainment Tonight

Zima has been working for ET as a senior producer since March 2015 and was promoted to the correspondent position in September 2019.

“I’m so excited for this next step,” she told PEOPLE at the time. “My job is my passion and the next phase means doing more of what I love.”

During her time at ET, Zima founded ETOnline’s YouTube show Roses and Rosé, which recapped episodes of The Bachelor.

Following her promotion, the correspondent credited Harrison with being her support system since they began dating.

“Chris has been incredibly supportive of my career,” Zima said. “He’s been my sounding board and the kind of guy who stops what he’s doing to take my call if I need advice, personally or professionally. We work hard to be each other’s biggest champions and celebrate our accomplishments.”

Since starting at ET, Zima has won three Daytime Emmys for her work.

She and Harrison first began dating in August 2018

Harrison and Zima met three years prior, in 2015, as she interviewed him multiple times for her show. However, Zima made the first move in August 2018 when she slid into Harrison’s Instagram DMs, she shared on Nick Viall’s Viall Files podcast in 2019.

“It was always incredibly professional,” she said about their relationship before 2018. “Not in a negative way … but I never looked at him and ever considered [if] I found him attractive.”

She said the change happened when they began flirting at a craft service table during a The Bachelor: Women Tell All taping.

“He just gave me a different vibe,” Zima told Viall. “It was fairly overt. He mentioned something about picking his kids up or something. He somehow brought up being single, I think. And then I said something like, ‘I’m single now,’ and he was like, ‘Oh.’ But I said it in a more eloquent way. … I opened the door and he walked through.”

Harrison asked her out to get drinks, and after a three-hour conversation, they knew they were right for each other.

She and Harrison made their relationship public in January 2019

Even though they were privately dating for months, Harrison and Zima didn’t confirm their relationship until January 2019 when they walked the red carpet at a pre-party for the Screen Actors Guild Awards.

“I know what I do is public, as far as hosting and the shows I do, but I’m a pretty private guy [and] I’ll stay that way for the most part,” he later explained to PEOPLE on why he chose to keep his relationship quiet for five months. “We came to the realization that we didn’t want to hide — we wanted to be able to date and enjoy life. When it got to the point where we were having to try to hide, we were like this is enough. We just wanted to live our lives.”

He explained that their romance was going well because they were both able to separate work from their personal lives — and didn’t spend too much time discussing The Bachelor at home!

“I have an off-switch and when I step away, I like to step away and she’s really good about that, too, where she doesn’t bring work home,” he said, adding their relationship just keeps getting “better and better and better” with time. “You have got to shut it down and live your life at some point. Believe it or not, we don’t talk Bachelor 24/7!”

Harrison proposed in October 2021

Three years after they started dating, Harrison proposed to Zima at a venue in Napa Valley Wine Country. “I love you @laurenzima,” he wrote in his Instagram post announcing their engagement. “The next chapter starts now!”

Zima also made the announcement on her Instagram, writing that Harrison is the “most incredible partner.”

“We tell each other this all the time, and we said it again in an unforgettably beautiful moment this weekend: I didn’t know love could be like this,” she wrote in the caption of her post.

She continued, “Thank you for loving me, championing me and asking me to marry you. Here’s to the next amazing chapter, and all the rest 💍.”

She and Harrison got married in October 2023

Zima and Harrison wed on Oct. 14, 2023, in Napa Valley, California. The "emotional, jubilant" ceremony was only attended by a few friends and family.

“I've just heard a lot of people say that on your wedding day, you don't get the time with everybody, so we decided to do a really small, intimate ceremony, with the people who have really been there with us since the beginning of our relationship," Zima told PEOPLE.

A few weeks later, Harrison and Zima hosted a "blowout bash" in Austin, where the couple now lives full-time. They exchanged vows (again) in front of 225 guests — which included more than a dozen Bachelor Nation folks — and Zima got a chance to re-wear her Sottero & Midgley strapless, A-line, satin wedding dress.

“The running joke was whether we could find a way for Chris to officiate his own wedding since he has so much experience,” Zima said, “but instead we had Mike Levitt, Chris’ longtime friend.”

She is a stepmom to Harrison's two kids

Harrison shares two children — Joshua and Taylor — with his ex-wife, Gwen, whom he split from in 2012. He often posts photos of him and Zima spending time with his kids — whether it be family vacations or visits to Texas Christian University, where they're both students.

In August 2022, when both of his kids moved into their college dorms, Harrison posted about the moment on his Instagram, thanking Zima for her help.

“Two days two kids moved into college @texaschristianuniversity,” he wrote in the caption. “We are physically and emotionally exhausted! Thank God @laurenzima was there every step of the way. Lots of sweat, laughs and a few tears (mostly from me). So proud of both these kids.”

Zima has also spoken about how she admires Harrison as a father and has learned from him “what it means to be a great parent,” she wrote in a tribute to him on Father’s Day in 2022. "He texts to say, ‘I know you have a tough day ahead, I’m here for you.’ And he says, ‘I love you.’ All the time. As a result, they know the love they deserve, and the love they should give."

She added, “He does all this and more, and as a result, he has two incredible children. Chris Harrison, we love you. Thank you for being the father and person you are. And #HappyFathersDay to all the dads doing the hard work. It’s worth it ❤️.”

She chose not to change her last name after getting married

Zima had no plans of changing her last name after marrying Harrison. She revealed as much on an episode of her then-fiancé's Most Dramatic Podcast Ever podcast.

"The assumption, the commonality is still that a woman marrying a man is going to take that man's last name, or at least it will be a strong consideration or discussion point," Zima said. "I went on Instagram and said why are we not yet at the point where we're discussing would the man potentially take that last name?"

For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!

Read the original article on People.