These 8 TV Couples Were So Perfect They Became Couples in Real Life

When your two favorite TV characters finally break their tension and have that first—sometimes extra juicy—kiss, magic is really made. You’ve invested so many hours in watching their relationship develop, it’s a personal accomplishment when the big moment arrives.

To remember these sexy moments, we’re reminiscing on some of our all-time favorite TV couples… But we won’t stop there.

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It makes sense when you think about it: Playing a TV couple, you spend a lot of time getting to know your co-star, laughing with your co-star and obviously having heated make-out sessions with your co-star—not to mention said co-star is most likely really, really attractive. So how can we expect our favorite television duos not to fall in love?!

On and off screen, we loved following some of our favorite actors and most iconic TV characters as they navigated their way through the rocky waters of dating and marriage. Some relationships fizzled out quickly and some are still going strong; keep reading to see if your favorite couple made the cut!

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Katie Holmes and Joshua Jackson – Joey and Pacey in Dawson’s Creek

Ah, young love: Holmes revealed in an interview with People that Jackson was actually her first true love (cue all of the heart eyes).

Holmes and Jackson’s love grew quickly, as they began dating in real life even before their characters started dating on the show. They dated from 1998 until 2000 before breaking up, yet continued to still film together for several years afterward.

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Kit Harington and Rose Leslie – Jon Snow and Ygritte in Game of Thrones

The on-screen duo fell in love in Iceland, where they shot many of their scenes together, and began dating IRL soon after Leslie came on board the cast as Snow’s enemy turned-lover.

Up Next: ‘Game of Thrones” Kit Harington Explains How Death Changed Jon Snow

The pair started dating in 2012 and are still together today; we just hope if they ever break up, it doesn’t involve her shooting him full of arrows like Ygritte’s breakup tactics on the show.

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Adam Brody and Rachel Bilson – Seth and Summer in The OC

We will forever have a soft spot in our hearts for Seth and Summer, one of our favorite TV couples of all time.

All of our wildest OC dreams came true when they started dating in real life, lasting a whole three years before the couple called it quits in 2006. Today, Brody is married to former Gossip Girl star Leighton Meester and Bilson has been with Hayden Christensen for close to 10 years—and they both have ridiculously cute babies.

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Anna Paquin and Stephen Moyer – Sookie and Bill in True Blood

Paquin and Moyer wasted no time starting their relationship, as they made things official before the show’s pilot had even aired, with Moyer saying he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt she was “the one” only a few days after meeting her.

True Blood’s More: True Blood’s Anna Paquin Reveals It All in New Steamy Scene With Downton Star

Even though their on-screen love didn’t work out so well, off-screen things were a fairy tale. After dating for three years, the couple married in 2010; they are still together today and have two kids together.

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Kaley Cuoco and Johnny Galecki – Penny and Leonard in The Big Bang Theory

Not only are these two good at acting, they’re ridiculously good at keeping a secret: Cuoco and Galecki didn’t reveal that they had been secretly dating during the show until three years after they broke up!

The pair dated quietly from 2007 until 2009 before going their separate ways, and they’ve since publicly stated that it was a very mutual breakup and that they still remain great friends today.

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Ian Somerhalder and Nina Dobrev – Damon and Elena in The Vampire Diaries

Dobrev had publicly stated in early interviews that she never wanted to date a co-star, but apparently that goal went out the window when things heated up between her and Somerhalder in 2010.

While their characters had an on again-off again, fiery romance on the show, ultimately they couldn’t make it work in real life. Even though they parted ways in 2013, Dobrev stayed on the show for two more years and maintains she and her ex still love and respect each other today.

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Alexis Bledel and Milo Ventimiglia – Rory and Jess in Gilmore Girls

Long before we loved Milo as Jack on This Is Us, we adored him on Gilmore Girls—and apparently so did his co-star, Bledel, although she managed to keep it a secret for a long time. They even hinted in interviews at the time that it was fun to think about marriage—don’t toy with us that way, you two.

Even though we would have loved to see these two say “I do,” sadly they only dated from 2002 to 2006, parting ways romantically when he left the show.

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Chad Michael Murray and Sophia Bush – Lucas and Brooke in One Tree Hill

We fell in love with them as Lucas and Brooke on One Tree Hill thanks to their insane chemistry, and we were downright giddy when we learned the on-screen romance had carried over into their off-screen worlds, eventually leading to wedding bells!

However, just like their tumultuous TV relationship, Murray and Bush‘s marriage was short-lived and they separated after only five months of matrimony.

Up Next: 7 More Celebrity Couples That Fell in Love While on Set

Photo Credit: Getty / Michael Buckner