Actor Matthew Lillard celebrated 24 years of marriage with a heartfelt social media tribute to wife Heather Helm. “24 years of marriage. In Hollywood that’s equivalent to, like 47 human years. I am as lucky as it gets. I adore you madly Heather Lillard. True story,” he wrote on Instagram alongside past and present photos of the couple.
The pair’s romance began at a late 1990s party, where Lillard was so taken with Helm that he arranged to attend her friend’s wedding to connect with her. They married on Aug. 26, 2000, and have since welcomed three children.
Videos by PopCulture.com
In a recent interview with E! News, the Scream star, 54, discussed their partnership: “I’ve been married 24 years in a crazy business,” noting they’ve maintained harmony throughout. “We never had a difficult time. We’re good yin-yang. I am very carefree, like, I will jump off a cliff a million times. And my wife has the ability to balance that with a sense of diligence, and she’s very prudent.” He added that she has been “incredible to parent with and a real gift to partner” while noting that despite his adventurous tendencies, “I’m pretty basic.”
Their eldest daughter, Addison, notably arrived on June 14, 2002—the same day Scooby-Doo premiered. “I was literally holding my newborn child, and the head of the studio called to [say] congratulations,” Lillard recalled. “And I said, ‘Yeah, she’s beautiful. I can’t believe it.’ He’s like, ‘No, we just greenlit the second movie.’”
Helm, a Southern California native raised in the Glendale/La Cañada area, built her own career path, graduating from the University of California before becoming Disney‘s director of Special Event Marketing. She later established Portera, an antique Spanish door-importing company, before transitioning to real estate full-time in 2009. Her achievements include ranking among Southern California’s top 1% of realtors, and her community involvement extends to organizations such as Pasadena Children’s Guild, Five Acres, and Circle of Friends.
The couple’s children have pursued diverse interests: Addison studies drama and visual arts at UCLA, with her mother describing her as an “incredible human,” artist, activist, and “everyone’s ray of sunshine.” Their middle child, Macey, graduated from Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy and now studies acting at Carnegie Mellon University. Meanwhile, their son Liam developed an interest in real estate, though his father noted he “gave zero effs” about acting, stating, “I want nothing to do with that. Nothing about that is appealing to me.”
Their lasting bond is frequently celebrated on social media, with both partners sharing meaningful milestones. For their 23rd anniversary in 2023, Helm posted a throwback photo from London in 1999, writing, “Missing you on our anniversary, @matthewlillard… It’s always better when we’re together.” Lillard responded with his own post, sharing a photo of the couple on a boat and noting, “23 years has gone so quickly. I would happily do every beat all over again. I love you, every single bit of you.”
