What We Know About Hallmark Star Ashley Williams' Relationship With Neal Dodson
On the must-watch Hallmark channel, Ashley Williams is known for starring in movies such as "Two Tickets to Paradise," "Notes of Autumn," and "Holiday Hearts." Outside of the feel-good network, the actor has appeared in series like "The Jim Gaffigan Show," "Good Morning, Miami," and "How I Met Your Mother." While we love to see the romantic hijinks Williams gets up to on our television screens, her personal romantic life appears to be much more easy-going.
The Hallmark star is in a long-term relationship with Neal Dodson, whom she married in 2011 and has since had two kids with. "He's dreamy. He's also a rockstar dad and we don't know what we'd do without him," Williams said on Instagram about her husband. "Thanks @nealdodson17 for leading our nomadic family through the trenches with humor, bright ideas and unwavering energy. Every day is a ride and I'm ever grateful."
If you're unfamiliar, Dodson is an independent producer with credits in films such as "Margin Call," "A Most Violent Year," and "All is Lost." He's even worked on Hallmark movies with his wife, as he's listed as an executive producer on the titles "Sister Swap: A Hometown Holiday" and "Sister Swap: Christmas in the City."
The two met while working in the entertainment industry
Ashley Williams and Neal Dodson first met back in 2004 when their work brought them together on the same project. At the time, Williams was working on a sitcom, likely "Good Morning, Miami," while Dodson was employed as an assistant. In an Instagram post from 2019, the Hallmark star recalled her first impression of her future husband.
"16 years ago today I laid eyes on him for the first time in @warnerloughlin's office. He was coaching actresses on their accents for auditions and I was on a sitcom," she shared, noting that he was wearing a Carnegie Melon hoodie and started handing her plays to read. "He seemed nervous. I was delighted. He talked a lot... but everything he said was interesting, funny, and somehow rang true or resonated in me the way only the sound of a cello ever had before."
Williams and Dodson's relationship haven't shared many details about the early days of their relationship, but we do know that their budding romance led to a life-long commitment and a happy little family.
Ashley and Neal tied the knot in a laid-back wedding
After their initial meet-cute, Ashley Williams and Neal Dodson became engaged on Thanksgiving of 2009, tying the knot a year and a half later with a low-key wedding celebration. "We wanted an intimate, farm-inspired wedding," Williams told People at the time. "We basically planned an upscale keg party!"
The happy event occurred at the Nashville farm of her very famous brother-in-law – Williams' sister, Kimberly Williams-Paisley, is married to country singer Brad Paisley. It was a pretty intimate affair, with Williams and Dodson inviting only 50 of their closest friends and family. The couple kept the whole thing simple, serving pulled pork, macaroni and cheese, and biscuits for dinner, opting for banana pudding in lieu of a traditional wedding cake, and handing out flip-flops as wedding favors.
Williams has posted some snapshots of the special day over the years, with the actor sharing a collection of professional photos in 2021 to celebrate her and Dodson's 10-year anniversary. In the photos, the Hallmark star can be seen in a beautiful ivory wedding gown and a charming updo.
The couple has two kids, Gus and Odie
In the years following their wedding, Ashley Williams and Neal Dodson have had two kids together. The couple welcomed their first son, Gus, in October 2014, with their second son Odie being born in May 2017. To protect the privacy of their children, the parents have chosen to keep their faces off of social media, though Williams does occasionally mention the little ones in her Instagram posts.
In a post from 2019, the Hallmark star recalled her initial experience of finding out she and her husband were pregnant with their first child. "Five years ago today I took this pregnancy test and it told me Gus was on the way," Williams captioned a snapshot of a positive pregnancy test. She added: "I'd just finished my first broadway show and was about to start shooting the pilot for ["The Jim Gaffigan Show]. Neal was shooting ["A Most Violent Year"] we were living in a tiny apartment above a pizza shop in soho."
Other than that, the actor shared on social media that she and her family moved into a new home in May 2023, with the couple purchasing a Californian fixer-upper for over a million dollars. Over the pandemic, Williams shared that she was largely living a nomadic lifestyle, staying in Airbnbs and hotels, but it seems that the family has finally set down some permanent roots.