Who Is Vanessa Williams' Husband? All About Jim Skrip

The actress and former businessman have been married since 2015

Vanessa Williams and her husband, Jim Skrip, have been married for over 8 years.

While Skrip is a private person, there are several things to know about the former businessman. Whenever Williams speaks about him in interviews, she has nothing but good things to say.

“Jim is a real man,” she told PEOPLE in 2016, shortly after the couple celebrated their one-year anniversary. “You want somebody in your life who has integrity, who is solid, who knows who he is. He’s romantic and he’s a great guy.”

Skrip appears to feel the same way about Williams. In a 2015 interview with PEOPLE, he raved about his wife. “Vanessa is a very strong, down-to-earth person, full of love, who values family and friends, practices her faith and is a great mom. Her beauty inside matches her external beauty," he said.

So who is Vanessa Williams’ husband? Here’s everything to know about Jim Skrip and his relationship with the actress.

They met while on vacation in Egypt

Williams and Skrip crossed paths while they were on a Nile River cruise in Egypt. “I wasn’t looking for anything,” Williams told Madame Noire in 2015.

In a 2019 interview with Glamour, she revealed that the Egypologist tour guide thought the two of them might hit it off, and Williams took it from there. “I made the first move — he would never have approached me because I was with my daughter,” she said.

“He happened to be traveling alone and happened to know who I was but wasn’t a super fan,” she told Madame Noire.

In 2015, she opened up to PEOPLE about their first meeting, saying, “There was an immediate attraction, and after a long, three-hour dinner, we had so much in common. It was obviously meant to be!”

The two connected on an emotional level as well, Williams explained to Madame Noire. She said, “[Skrip] accepted me for who I was after a wonderful first three-hour date of talking about ourselves.”

He’s from Buffalo, New York

One of the things that helped Williams and Skrip bond was that he was from Buffalo, New York, which is where Williams’ mother grew up. That was actually the starting point of their first conversation.

“He was wearing a Buffalo Sabres shirt, and I walked over to him and said, ‘Are you from Buffalo? My mom’s from Buffalo,’ ” she told PEOPLE in 2015.

They got married in 2015

Williams and Skrip got married on July 4, 2015, in Buffalo, New York — a location that was thoughtfully chosen by the couple. Williams told PEOPLE that her engagement ring is from a Buffalo jeweler called Bomi, a piece that Skrip had “personally designed.”

“I really got a chance to bring my look and my people and my vibe to Buffalo, but I also got a chance to incorporate what Buffalo has to offer and wear a local jeweler,” she continued. “It was just really, really amazing.”

Their wedding also paid tribute to Egypt, where the two met and fell in love. They told PEOPLE that they opted for an Egyptian theme and decorated their venue with gold and ivory tents, Moroccan lanterns and colorful flowers.

Williams wore two non-traditional custom wedding dresses for the lavish event. Designed by Carmen Marc Valvo, one look featured a gown covered in gold leather petals. “I felt like an Egyptian goddess and that was exactly the theme I was going for,” Williams told PEOPLE.

He has been married before

Skrip is Williams’ third husband — she was previously married to Ramon Hervey II and Rick Fox — and Skrip has been married before as well.

Williams revealed this during a 2016 appearance on Live with Regis and Kelly, when talking about why they decided to celebrate their one-year wedding anniversary with a second wedding that included a ceremony in a Catholic church.

“His annulment wasn’t done yet,” she said. “So we had to get remarried in the Catholic church.”

The two had a more traditional Catholic ceremony on May 30, 2016. Williams wore a Pamella Roland dress with a pink sash around her waist and kept her hair in a loose chignon.

“Yesterday we took one last walk down the aisle — this time in my little church,” Williams captioned a photo of them kissing on her Instagram page. “Officially wedded Catholic. Amen! #MyJim.”

He’s a former businessman

Skrip was a successful accountant and real estate agent before meeting Williams, the star revealed during an appearance on The Queen Latifah Show in 2014.

His lack of involvement in Hollywood is beneficial to the couple’s relationship. During an interview with ABC News in 2014, Williams said it is “really comforting and relaxing to be able to have a relationship without any added stress or pressure or gossip.”

“It allows a certain freedom and comfort to know that it’s private and can grow on its own,” she added. “It’s separate than having the invasion of people commenting and being public.”

He’s a supportive partner

Skrip has had nothing but good things to say about his wife.

When talking to PEOPLE in 2015 about their wedding, he said, “When I saw Vanessa walk down the aisle, I didn’t even notice her dress. We locked eyes, and I got caught up in the moment, full of happiness and joy. When I finally noticed the dress, it was perfect for Vanessa ... sleek, simple and sexy.”

In a 2015 interview with Glamour, Williams revealed that his supportive personality was one of the things she loved about him.

“When I met Jim, I realized he was someone who could be a solid role model for my daughter, who could support me and my career and be a part of running my household and my businesses,” she said.

He’s family-oriented

During their wedding in 2015, Skrip paid tribute to his family in a few different ways. Williams told PEOPLE that his wedding band is a family heirloom that belonged to his grandfather. His grandparents also got married in the same church Williams and Skrip did in Buffalo, New York.

“He’s a traditional kind of guy and it fit,” she explained. “It was in his mother’s possession, and he just kept it because he liked it.”

Skrip paid tribute to Williams’ family as well: She told PEOPLE that at the wedding, he wore an ivory suit as a nod to her father, who wore a similar ivory jacket at his own wedding.

“I said, ‘Okay, we got to do this,’ ” Williams said, adding that he wore the jacket to “keep it traditional.”

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