Who Is Maya Rudolph's Partner?

Get to know Maya Rudolph's other half.

Everyone loves Maya Rudolph, but Paul Thomas Anderson may love her the most. While they appear at ease coupled up in front of the camera, the long-time couple doesn’t really share many details about their private lives and their social media is dedicated to their crafts. In 2015, Rudolph, now an M&Ms spokesperson, was asked about their relationship in an interview with The Guardian, she responded pointedly, “I never talk about Paul.”

So, who is the other half of this power couple? Here’s what we know about Maya Rudolph’s partner Paul Thomas Anderson.

Related: Young Stars Rush Into Love and Live in Sweet, Flavorful Coming of Age Comedy Licorice Pizza 

Who is Maya Rudolph’s partner?

Maya Rudolph’s partner is award-winning filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson (P.T.). He was born in California on June 26, 1970. Anderson attended Santa Monica College before enrolling and spending two semesters at Emerson College. He spent two days at New York University before he kicked his career off as a production assistant on television, films and music videos on both the east and west coasts.

Anderson has quite the resume. Not only is he hailed as one of the best filmmakers in Hollywood, but he has also been nominated for 11 Academy Awards, including Best Original Screenplay nomination for Boogie Nights and Magnolia. He also has been nominated for films like There Will Be Blood, Inherent Vice, Phantom Thread and Licorice Pizza. The Licorice Pizza cast includes Alana Haim, Cooper Hoffman, Bradley Cooper, Sean Penn, Tom Waits and Benny Safdie, and was nominated for multiple awards, including three Academy Awards. He’s also directed music videos for Radiohead, Fiona Apple (also one of his ex-girlfriends) and Haim.

How did Maya Rudolph and P.T.  Anderson meet? 

They have never really publicly shared how they met, but they started dating in 2001 following Anderson’s breakup with singer Fiona Apple. In an interview with The Guardian, Rudolph did not want to share how they met, “No, it’s a sweet thing … Too personal. I don’t want to share it.” Two years later, Rudolph appeared at a Q&A event for Anderson’s film Punch-Drunk Love, but at the time, their relationship status was unknown.

Is Maya Rudolph married?

Maya and Anderson have been together for nearly two decades, but they are not married.

Why does Maya Rudolph call P.T. Anderson her husband?

Although the couple has never officially tied the knot, in 2018, Rudolph told the New York Times she began calling Anderson her “husband” after the birth of their first child in 2005. Labeling Anderson as her husband rather than boyfriend started when she was at a restaurant and talking with a maître d,’ who told a story about a man who labeled himself as "the unofficial mayor of the Valley." In reply, Maya blurted out, "I hope it wasn't my husband." From that point on, the label stuck, and Anderson doesn’t mind.

“He likes ‘husband’ because people know what that means. It means he’s the father of my child, and I live with him, and we are a couple, and we’re not going anywhere,” she said. P.T. Anderson in turn refers to Rudolph as his wife.

How many kids does Maya Rudolph have?

Maya and P.T. Anderson have four kids. They have a 17-year-old daughter, Pearl, as well as a 13-year-old daughter Lucille, 9-year-old daughter Minnie and 11-year-old son Jack.

Rudolph’s mom was singer Minnie Riperton, so she incorporated the name “Minnie” into two of her daughters' names, Pearl Minnie, and Minnie Ida.

In 2017, she told Parade she loved everything about being a mother. “I find being a parent endlessly fascinating and challenging in the most wonderful way, and every day is different than the next. It just requires a lot of thinking and not being so hard on yourself and trying to be the best possible version of yourself, which is really hard to remember. It’s a good exercise.”

Three years later, Rudolph told People that she has no plans to expand her family any further. She admitted that she doesn't remember life before motherhood, but said of having another child, "I would be a crazy person if that happened! I would be a crazy person!"

In 2014, Maya appeared in Paul's film Inherent Vice. As GQ put it, Paul's typical day includes: "four kids and a beautiful partner named Maya Rudolph and a house in Tarzana [Los Angeles] that he drives in from each morning, dropping off the children at school before showing up to the office."

Related: 100 Mom-Inspired Baby Names

Has Maya Rudolph and P.T. Anderson's relationship inspired any movies?

Anderson confirmed the film Phantom Thread is based on their relationship, saying, “I remember that I was very sick, just with the flu, and I looked up and my wife looked at me with tenderness that made me think, 'I wonder if she wants to keep me this way, maybe for a week or two.' I was watching the wrong movies when I was in bed, during this illness. I was watching Rebecca, The Story of Adele H., and Beauty and the Beast, and I really started to think that maybe she was poisoning me. So that kernel of an idea, I had in my mind when I started working on writing something.”

Related: 100 Best Movies of All Time

Who did P.T. Anderson date before Maya Rudolph? 

Anderson dated singer Fiona Apple from 1997 to 2000. A 2012 Grantland retrospective called Anderson and Apple, "the coolest, dorkiest, sexiest, and most indelible celebrity power couple of the 90s.” However, they appeared to be in a seemingly toxic relationship. The exes first met during a Rolling Stone cover shoot in 1997. Apple previously talked about his temper and said on a way to do volunteer work in 2000 with kids, Anderson “shoved her out of his car” while dropping her off. However, she also says Anderson played a part in helping her get off drugs.

For her part, Rudolph was rumored to have had a brief fling with SNL alum actor Chris Kattan before she started dating P.T. Anderson.

What is the key to Maya Rudolph and Paul Thomas Anderson's long-lasting relationship?

In 2018, Rudolph said one of the keys to keeping their relationship on track is simple. “I think, genuinely, like the effort to make an effort—[that ’s] the most romantic gesture. Like, to be present," she explained. “To show up every day is kind of the most romantic part because you can bail at any moment.”

Next, read more about the 75 best movie directors of all time.