Top 10 Directors Who Dated Their Stars

James Cameron and Linda Hamilton met during production for the first “Terminator” movie, with James as the director and Linda in the starring role of Sarah Connor. This initiated a working relationship that would be financially beneficial, as both reprised their roles in “Terminator 2,” and that film capped one of the most successful movie franchises of all time. Meanwhile, their relationship changed from professional to intimate around the same time that “Terminator 2” hit theaters, when they moved in together, and Linda became pregnant shortly after. The two would marry in 1997, but then divorced in 1999, with Hamilton receiving an alleged $50 million settlement.

Roger Vadim was notorious for his courting of famous starlets. Along with Brigitte Bardot, Vadim dated many international actresses, from the Dane Annette Stroyberg to the French Catherine Deneuve and the American Jane Fonda. The Bardot relationship started when Vadim, a young director’s assistant, saw her on the cover of Elle magazine. His recommended her to director Marc Allégret helped launch her screen career, as she would go on to star in a number of Vadim’s own movies. They married in 1952 when she was just 18, but divorced five years later.

Paul W. S. Anderson isn’t the only director Milla Jovovich has dated. Before meeting Paul Anderson on the set of “Resident Evil,” Milla dated Luc Besson, her director in “The Fifth Element.” She eventually married Besson, but the relationship had turned sour by 1999. She would eventually find solace in Anderson three years later. He directed the “Resident Evil” series and “The Three Musketeers,” all of which Milla starred in. She and Paul married in 2009 and have two children together. Remarkably (for Hollywood standards), the two are still together as of early 2016.

Visual artist Sam Taylor-Wood made her feature-length directorial debut with “Nowhere Boy” in 2009. The film is about the adolescence and creative maturation of John Lennon, a role that was played by 18-year-old Aaron Johnson. The 42-year-old director began a relationship with Johnson on set, and they were engaged by the time of the film’s release. They married in 2012, took on Taylor-Johnson as their last names, and have since birthed two children. Sam also later directed the “50 Shades of Grey” movie, which is the most controversial move of her career has far as we’re concerned—age gap be damned.

In David Lynch’s mind-bending thriller, “Blue Velvet,” Italian actress Isabella Rossellini had a starring role. She became infatuated with the offbeat director, and a romance began while filming the 1986 surrealist classic. Despite his reputation as an eccentric, Lynch is known to lead quite a normal home life, all things considered. He and Rossellini had an amicable four year relationship—even becoming engaged at one point—with the break up occurring because of David’s aversion to Isabella’s pungent cooking. That’s not a joke.

Judy Garland is of course famous for playing Dorothy in “The Wizard of Oz,” and Vincente Minnelli is known for directing movie musicals like “Meet Me in St. Louis,” - which Garland starred in. It was during the production of this movie that the two met and fell into temporary love. They would marry in 1945 and remained that way for six years before splitting. It wasn’t all for naught, though, as renowned actress Liza Minnelli was a product of their relationship.

Joel Coen is one-half of the Coen Brothers writing/directing team. They broke into mainstream movies in the ‘80s, and one of the first people that the Coens cast in their professional career happened to be Frances McDormand - an actress with no previous credits. Their film debut, “Blood Simple,” put the Coens and McDormand on the map, and launched a longstanding relationship with Frances and Joel. They have been married since 1984 and Frances has starred in several of the Coen brothers’ movies, the most notable of which is “Fargo,” for which she won an Academy Award.

Kate Capshaw is best known for playing Willie, the female lead in “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.” And it was during the production of this film that she met Steven Spielberg, the director of the “Indiana Jones” franchise. However, Spielberg was still involved with Amy Irving at the time. When Irvin and Spielberg divorced in 1989, Kate was given an opening. It wasn’t long before she and Spielberg married - in 1991 in fact - and continued to expand their family. As of early 2016, they’re still living the high life with theirmultiple children.

Helena Bonham Carter’s name has become synonymous with Tim Burton for several years now. Together, the pair is known fortheir macabre styles, their eccentricities, and their roles in dark movies; Helena in acting and Tim in directing. So, being perfect for each other, the two began dating after Helena was cast in Tim Burton’s “Planet of the Apes” remake. They would date for over a decade, with Helena starring in many films that Tim directed, including “Corpse Bride,” “Sweeney Todd,” and “Alice in Wonderland”. After 2 children together, the couple separated in 2014, saying that it was a mutual, peaceful break.

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions:

- Len Wiseman & Kate Beckinsale

- Peter Bogdanovich & Cybill Shepherd

- Darren Aronofsky & Rachel Weisz

“Annie Hall” is at least partly based on Woody Allen’s real relationship with Diane Keaton – according to Keaton at least. And Allen reportedly wrote the titular character for the actress. The neurotic director and the free-spirited actress first met when Keaton auditioned for Allen’s play, “Play It Again, Sam” in the late 1960s. The romance began instantaneously and lasted at least throughout the Broadway show’s run, with Keaton later starring in a string of Woody’s films that would form the apex of each other’s careers. Diane is not the only actress that Woody has dated. His relationship exploits are legendary, for better or for worse, and, along with Keaton, he dated Louise Lasser, Stacey Nelkin, and Mia Farrow, all of whom he also directed in movies.

Do you agree with our list? Who’s your favorite director-actor couple? For more star-struck Top 10s published daily, be sure to subscribe to MsMojo.