Kelly Ripa Jokingly Reveals the Actor Her Husband Mark Consuelos Gives Blessing to Marry

Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos have been happily married far longer than many other showbiz couples, but Ripa surprisingly has a plan for a new man in her life should she ever split from Consuelos. The Riverdale star is apparently fine with Ripa marrying Spider-Man: Far From Home actor Jake Gyllenhaal if they get a divorce.

During Friday's episode of Live With Kelly and Ryan, Ripa told Gyllenhaal she received a fan letter suggesting she leave Consuelos and marry him.

"I have a proposition for you. Now, I received a letter from my neighbor who received a letter addressed to me to their address. … You're in this, so brace yourself," Ripa told Gyllenhaal before she read the letter.

"Dear Kelly Ripa, you should divorce your husband, Mark Consuelos, and marry Jake Gyllenhaal. He was on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on the 19th [of February]. It may be better for your children," Ripa read.

She then asked Gyllenhaal if he was up for it.

"It feels like a lot of pressure for a moment like this, but I'm open to it," a shocked Gyllenhaal said.
Ripa said she already ran the idea by Consuelos, who approved.

"I ran it by Mark," Ripa admitted. "He thinks you are a hell of a guy, and he thinks that you'd make a great stepfather to our kids. So you've got that to look forward to. … Dreams do come true."

Gyllenhaal tried to back out of the proposal though, pointing out that he travels too much for them to have a stable relationship. It probably would also not be the best idea for Ripa and Consuelos' children, Lola, 18; Michael, 22; and Joaquin, 16.

Consuelos and Ripa, both 48, have been married since 1996 after meeting on the set of All My Children. One only has to take a brief glimpse at their Instagram pages to see how madly in love the two are, 23 years after their wedding. For example on Thursday, Ripa shared a throwback photo of Consuelos from their Capri honeymoon, including five heart emojis.

"I'm crazy about my wife," Consuelos told Fox News in February. "We both come from families, our parents are still together — family is super important to us. We have three great kids, and that also bonds you, having that experience together."

Consuelos later said he felt "super fortunate" to be married to his "best friend."

"She's also really patient and really tolerant," Consuelos added. "I think that's a big key to the success of our long [marriage]. We've been married forever!"

Consuelos will return to Riverdale in the fall on The CW. He plays Hiram Lodge, the father of Veronica, on the Archie Comics-inspired series. Ripa guest-starred in Season 3, playing Hiram's mistress in the episode "The Red Dahlia."

Photo credit: ANGELA WEISS/AFP/Getty Images