Since her wedding, fans have wanted to know more about Lily Collins’ husband, Charlie McDowell. Collins, who stars in Netflix’s Emily in Paris, got engaged to McDowell, a screenwriter and director, in September 2020. She confirmed the news with an Instagram post showing off her ring after McDowell proposed to her during a road trip in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
“I’ve been waiting my lifetime for you and I can’t wait to spend our lifetime together..” she captioned a picture of her kissing her fiancé. In an interview with Extra in December 2020, Collins opened up about what the engagement meant to her. “I don’t know how used to it you get,” she said. “I never would ever wear a ring on that finger. It wasn’t like I was superstitious, I was just like, ‘I’m saving that finger.’ Even in photoshoots, I’d be like, ‘No, no, no …’ I was always saving it, so now it’s like, ‘Oh, right, like, it has its place, it’s finally found the right ring to put on.’ ”
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Collins also revealed to Byrdie in 2020 why McDowell proposed to her during a road trip, which was a tradition they started that year. “You’re literally breathing in clean air,” she said. “You’re not feeling at a loss of creativity and you’re doing things with your hands and getting outside and building fires, and feeling really at peace in a time when there’s just been so much darkness.”
Collins confessed that McDowell proposed to her while they were on the road between Sedona and Santa Fe. She described the proposal as “a surreal moment that you just replay over and over in your head.” Though their engagement came after only one year, Collins confessed that she knew immediately McDowell was The One. “All my friends joked with me at first,” she said. “They’re like, ‘How can you know’ I’m like, ‘I know. I just know.’”
How did Lily Collins and Charlie McDowell meet?
Collins and McDowell met on the set of his movie, Gilded Rage, in 2019. In an interview with Live With Kelly & Ryan in October 2020, Collins revealed that she had an instant connection with McDowell and knew she wanted to be his wife from the moment she met him. “I knew the second that I met him that I wanted to be his wife one day, so it was just a matter of when, really,” she said.
After Gilded Rage, Collins and McDowell went on to work together again in his upcoming movie, Windfall. Collins told Vogue Australia in 2021 that she thought the movie would be more difficult now that she and McDowell were officially together, but what happened was the opposite. “I thought it would be harder, I have to say. I thought it would be more stressful to have to work with him, but it honestly was really amazing and freeing,” she said.
In August 2019, Collins and McDowell went Instagram with a photo of her and her beau in Paris, France. “Always got your back…” she captioned the shot. In her interview with Live With Kelly and Ryan, Collins confirmed that McDowell would often visit her on the set of Emily in Paris. “He did come out a few times. And we did roam the streets and get lost on the cobblestone alleyways a few times,” she said. “I miss that the most. The idea of being in Paris, taking a scooter, going to museums, eating and even taking the Eurostar to London and Bruges … everything is so romantic.”
Collins and McDowell got engaged in September 2020 in New Mexico. They married a year later on September 4, 2021, in Dunton, Colorado. I’ve never wanted to be someone’s someone more than I do yours, and now I get to be your wife. On September 4th, 2021 we officially became each other’s forever. I love you beyond @charliemcdowell…” Collins captioned a photo of her on her wedding day. McDowell, for his part, captioned his post, “I married the most generous, thoughtful, and beautiful person I’ve ever known. I love you @lilyjcollins.”
Though they don’t have any kids, Collins and McDowell share a dog named Redford, who has more than 70,000 followers on Instagram. “We’re so incredibly thankful for our little family, friends, and the opportunity to all be together this year — celebrating our first Thanksgiving as a married couple! Sending gratitude, love, and light to you guys wherever you are!…” Collins captioned a photo of her, McDowell, and Redford for Thanksgiving in 2021.
What is Lily Collins’ husband Charlie McDowell’s job?
McDowell, who is the son of actor Malcolm McDowell and actress Mary Steenburgen, is a director and writer. He’s directed films such as The One I Love and The Discovery. He is also the director of the movie Gilded Rage, which stars Bill Skarsgård, Christoph Waltz as well as Collins. Collins also isn’t McDowell’s first famous relationship. He’s previously been linked to actresses like Rooney Mara and Emilia Clarke. According to his IMDb, McDowell’s other directing credits include two episodes of Silicon Valley, two episodes of Dear White People, as well as various episodes of other TV shows, such as Legion, On Becoming a God in Central Florida and Dispatches From Everywhere.
Collins told The Hollywood Reporter in 2022 about what it was like to work with McDowell in Windfall. “It’s really funny because I kept forgetting that we were together because he treats everyone equally and he’s such an actor’s director,” Collins said. “The way in which he communicates was so easy that it felt as easy as it normally is. But I always saw him as my director. Obviously, going home at the end of the night to talk about the day is different.” She continued of her husband as a director of the movie, “It is a single location and that’s something Charlie has done in his work before. He’s masterful at that. It takes a lot to make one location feel a million different ways. You start to feel stuck, claustrophobic and uncomfortable, and it becomes a character in and of itself. We wanted to be creative.”
Collins also told the magazine about what her husband is like as a director. “He’s weirdly calm under pressure and very solution-driven,” she said. “He knows exactly what he wants. He has a very clear vision. He can make decisions like that — super, super quick. If something changes because of unforeseen issues or whatnot, he’s very calm. He’s just about the end game; how do we get there and how do we tell the story in a way that makes sense, is honest and makes you feel comfortable.”
In an interview with the Today Show in 2022, Collins also recalled wedding planning while filming Windfall with McDowell.”We were also planning the wedding at the same time, which was so fascinating ’cause we would shoot and then go home and, like, write invites,” Collins said. “So it was definitely a mixing of the worlds, in the best of ways.”
She continued, “There were moments when I completely forget that he was my husband-to-be, and he was just my director, which is awesome.” “To then have your life partner as well as your director really champion and encourage you to bring whatever it is to the table that you want and play around with it … just the ability to feel free was so wonderful.”
In an interview with Nylon in 2021, Collins opened up about how she and McDowell relate. “It was very reminiscent of the rolling hills and forests in England. We’re both dual citizens, so it was something that we wanted to lean into,” she said. “It’s so nice to be able to finally say that I’m a wife, [but] sometimes it makes me feel very old.” She also talked about being able to “separate” her husband from him as a director when they work together. “I was actually surprised that I was able to really separate him as a director and also as fiancé,” she said. “It was so collaborative and fun to go to work and be trusted by each other, and to also take a break from it when you get home and just kind of watch a show and tune out.”
Collins called McDowell her “best friend” in an interview with E! News in 2022. “We can kind of conquer anything,” she said at the time. “We’ve been through so many changes globally, personally, and to be able to have a partner next to you that makes you laugh in times when you need it the most and helps you emotionally get through things, like moving to a foreign country for four months.” She continued, “I just feel so grateful that I have someone next to me to be able to accomplish that and your best friend with you all the time.”
