While some people grow up thinking about their future wedding — complete with a big white dress and a fancy reception with a gorgeous cake — other people have a different vision of what that day in their lives would be like, including some celebrity couples. Sure, they might have the money to throw a giant traditional wedding, but more and more often, we’re seeing stars opt for more unconventional options.
From low-key weddings, unexpected elopements, and even Las Vegas chapel weddings, we’ve seen it all from Hollywood’s biggest couples, and their creativity has no doubt inspired fans when it comes to planning their own ceremonies. Who doesn’t want to tie the knot with Elvis officiating?
(OK, plenty of people, but it does look so fun.)
Keep reading for the most unconventional celebrity weddings. Some were last-minute surprises, and some definitely didn’t pass the test of time, but it looks like everyone had a good time anyway.
Joe Jonas & Sophie Turner
When Joe Jonas and Sophie Turner got married, they totally surprised their friends and family by having a ceremony immediately following the 2019 Billboard Music Awards. They included all the Las Vegas clichés, Elvis and all, and Diplo even livestreamed the ceremony for his Instagram followers — though later it came out that he did not have the bride and groom’s approval to do so. Oops!
About a month after, Joe and Sophie did end up having a more traditional, big wedding in France.
Jennifer Lopez & Ben Affleck
While we’re on the subject of Vegas weddings, here’s another couple who famously got married in Sin City. Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez kept their Little White Chapel wedding small, inviting only their children, and got married just before the venue closed. Like Joe and Sophie, they also opted to have a bigger wedding at Ben’s Georgia estate the following month.
Jordan Peele & Chelsea Peretti
When Chelsea Peretti and Jordan Peele got married, the only witness they had in attendance was their dog. They tied the knot in a private elopement in Big Sur, California, and after the wedding, they got dressed up in wedding clothes for a funny ad for Booking.com, complete with a dolphin jumping in the ocean behind them.
Sarah Jessica Parker & Matthew Broderick
When Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick got married in 1997, the wedding was a total surprise — even to their guests. They gathered their loved ones at a synagogue in New York for a cocktail party that turned out to be their wedding, which is something SJP has since said she regrets.
She told Marie Claire in 2006: “I wore black on my wedding day, and I really regret that. I was too embarrassed to get married in white, and both Matthew and I were reluctant to have people pay so much attention to us. Which is ridiculous, because that’s when you can relish the attention, when it’s natural. We treated it like it was a big party on a Monday night, and I regret it.”
Pamela Anderson & Kid Rock
Pamela Anderson’s marriage to Kid Rock may have only lasted four months, but their wedding was a truly unforgettable one. They famously tied the knot while on a yacht in Saint-Tropez, and the bride wore a skimpy white bikini and the groom went shirtless. They later had to get married all over again at a Beverly Hills, California, courthouse, since the yacht wedding wasn’t legal.
Olivia Wilde & Tao Ruspoli
Olivia Wilde was just 19 years old when she married an Italian price named Tao Ruspoli on a school bus, which also happened to serve as his home. They’d go on to have two more weddings — one at Olivia’s parents’ farmhouse and one at Tao’s family’s castle in Italy — before their marriage came to an end in 2011.
Isla Fisher & Sacha Baron Cohen
When Isla Fisher and Sacha Baron Cohen got married, they had a very private, very small wedding in France, and it even included a bit of character work that the actor has become so famous for.
“We had a secret wedding in Paris. And the ruse was that it was my father’s 70th birthday and that he was a famous chef in England,” he told The New York Times. “That was how we avoided having photographers at the wedding. I trained him up to be in character. He said that his favorite dish that he created was L’Oeuf Scrambled.”
Amber Tamblyn & David Cross
There was almost nothing traditional about Amber Tamblyn and David Cross’ 2012 wedding. Not only did the bride wear a yellow dress, but she also kayaked to the ceremony instead of simply walking down the aisle like most brides do. Seriously impressive!
Kristen Bell & Dax Shepard
Though they’d been together for years at that point, Kristen Bell and Dax Shepard didn’t tie the knot until 2013, since they kept their promise not to get married until marriage equality was the law of the land. When the time came, they celebrated at the courthouse, keeping it low-key. The bride didn’t even wear a dress!
Kourtney Kardashian & Travis Barker
Kourtney Kardashian and Travis Barker tied the knot a couple of times before their lavish wedding in Italy. There was the “practice wedding” in Las Vegas, and then there was the courthouse wedding, and then there was the more traditional wedding — but even that one wasn’t that traditional. Leave it to these two to take things totally over the top!
Nicole Richie & Joel Madden
Nicole Richie’s 2010 wedding to Joel Madden included a completely unexpected guest: a live elephant! And it wasn’t just a surprise to their guests, either — the groom didn’t know it was happening himself.
“Nicole getting an elephant and not telling me is typical of our relationship,” he told People. “I am so the ‘no’ guy. But if there’s one time I want her to have the craziest thing she wants, it’s the day we marry.”
Dianna Agron & Winston Marshall
In 2016, Glee star Dianna Agron and Mumford & Sons singer Winston Marshall got married in Morocco, with a ceremony that lasted over an entire weekend. They kept the wedding as private as they could, but eventually, word (and photos) got out. They went their separate ways in 2020, though.
Solange Knowles & Alan Ferguson
In 2014, Solange Knowles and Alan Ferguson wed in New Orleans, with the bride arriving to the ceremony on a white bicycle. That wasn’t the only unconventional part of their wedding; there was also an outfit change that included a dress with a cape for Solange and two receptions. The couple divorced five years later, in 2019.
Salma Hayek & François-Henri Pinault
Salma Hayek and François-Henri Pinault’s wedding in 2009 included an entire weekend of partying in Italy. First, they started off with a masquerade ball, followed by the ceremony, which was attended by many celebrity guests, including Anna Wintour, Charlize Theron, and Penélope Cruz.
Mandy Moore & Taylor Goldsmith
Mandy Moore’s 2018 wedding to fellow musician Taylor Goldsmith was low-key, but looked like a lot of fun. She wore a pink polka dot dress to the ceremony that they held in their own backyard, though they did celebrate the reception at another venue, Fig House.
