Reba McEntire and Boyfriend Rex Linn Enjoy ‘Fancy’ Date Night at CMA Awards

Reba McEntire does not have to worry about hosting the 2022 Country Music Association Awards, but the country music legend will still have a busy night. She is set to perform multiple times and present during the ceremony at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena on Wednesday. Before McEntire took the stage, she walked the red carpet with her boyfriend, actor Rex Linn.

“Sunny and Buck clean up good,” she captioned the post. She included the hashtags “CMA Awards,” “Big Sky,” and “Fancy.” McEntire’s caption referred to the characters they play on ABC’s Big Sky.

McEntire, 67, will join Miranda Lambert and Carrie Underwood for the CMAs’ opening tribute to the late Loretta Lynn. She is also set to present an award and will perform a solo song during the ceremony. McEntire was not nominated for any award this year, but she does have seven CMA wins on her resume, including three Female Vocalist of the Year wins. McEntire joined the Country Music Hall of Fame, which is overseen by the CMA, in 2011.

Earlier this month, McEntire disappointed fans when she had to postpone a trio of shows on doctor’s orders. Her doctor advised her to go on vocal rest, so she delayed shows scheduled for Columbus, Raleigh, and Indianapolis until December. Tropical Storm Nicole forced McEntire to postpone Thursday’s scheduled concert in Estero, Florida until Dec. 10.

When McEntire is not performing, she is acting on ABC’s Big Sky. She joined the show as a main cast member for Season 3, subtitled Deadly Trails. McEntire plays Sunny Barnes, a backcountry outfitter who runs Sunny Day Excursions. Linn, 65, has a recurring role as Sunny’s husband Buck. The two have been dating since the fall of 2020 and they also appeared on CBS’ Young Sheldon.

During a recent Entertainment Weekly interview, Big Sky showrunner Elwood Reid credited Linn with convincing McEntire to take on her dark role on the show. “I was pitching her, and I heard this voice in the background, ‘Yes, hell yes, you’re doing this,’ and I saw Rex Linn, who’s also her boyfriend,” Reid recalled. “He said, ‘I’ve been telling her she needs to do this for 10 years.’ And then Reba stopped and said, ‘Will you hire my boyfriend Rex?’ I know Rex from Better Call Saul and lots of stuff that he’s worked on. And I was like, ‘Well, alright, that’s two for one.’”

The CMA Awards ceremony is now airing on ABC and will be available to stream on Hulu Thursday. Big Sky: Deadly Trails airs Wednesdays at 10 p.m. ET on ABC and is also streaming on Hulu.