At one time, eloping was about running away to get married in secret, because the whole world was against you. These days, no one is usually against people getting married. Still, celebrities sometimes elope for various reasons. In the case of Kelly Clarkson, for example, the reason was that going through the wedding rigmarole seemed too inconvenient. Still, hearing that someone’s eloped can have an exciting ring to it. Here are 10 celebrity couples who eloped, even if they could easily have married the usual way.
1. Gisele Bündchen and Tom Brady
Supermodel Gisele and star Super Bowl quarterback Tom Brady were engaged in January 2009. They had no real reason to rush the wedding. Gisele wasn’t pregnant (although Tom Brady’s ex-girlfriend Bridget Moynahan was expecting at the time). Perhaps Gisele simply wanted to not be shown up by an ex-girlfriend. Gisele and Brady married in a small, secret ceremony right after their engagement, though, and she became pregnant herself.
2. Janet Jackson and Wissam Al Mana
When Janet Jackson gets married, it is usually by method of elopement. In the beginning, when she eloped with singer James deBarge, it was because she was afraid that her fearsome father Joe Jackson would stand in their way. That was a real elopement. Now, though, she is one of the world’s most influential recording artists and her husband is a billionaire from the Middle East. Yet, her marriage to him was in secret – no one even knew that they were married, until they announced it a full year later.
3. Daniel Craig and Rachel Weisz
In 2011, the James Bond actor did a psychological thriller with Rachel Weisz, called Dream House. While the movie bombed at the box office, the two struck up a great romance. They were very private about it, though. When they got married a few months later, they only invited 4 people.
4. Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon
People usually make a huge spectacle of their wedding, and are quiet in the way they renew their vows over the years. Mariah and Nick like to do the opposite. While their wedding in 2008 was a very private matter in the Bahamas, they dream of over-the-top events for their vow renewals each year. In 2013, for instance, they shut down Disneyland in Anaheim for their fifth anniversary vow renewals.
5. Megan Fox and Brian Austin Green
Megan and Brian have a major age difference – she is 12 years younger than him. They met in 2004, and had a somewhat undependable relationship for the next 6 years. One day in 2010, the two suddenly showed up in Hawaii and got married in private. It’s been a lasting romance, though.
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6. Orlando Bloom and Miranda Kerr
English superstar Orlando Bloom’s wedding to Australian model Miranda Kerr in 2010 was by way of elopement. Unfortunately, their relationship didn’t last: they divorced in 2013. They do have a child to remember their relationship by, though: baby Flynn, who was born in January 2011.
7. Harrison Ford and Calista Flockhart
When the original Star Wars hero and the fun AllyMcBeal star met, gossip magazines constantly wrote their relationship off, because of the huge 34-year age difference. One day in 2010, they went off to New Mexico and eloped. It wasn’t real elopement – Gov. Bill Richardson of New Mexico officiated. Ford’s adult son Ben, who was in attendance, said, “Those crazy kids went off and eloped.”
8. Jodie Foster and Alexandra Hedison
Jodie Foster officially came out as gay, in a speech at the Golden Globes in 2013. In April 2014, Us Weekly reported that the Oscar winner married longtime partner Alexandra Hedison in a private ceremony. Hedison was previously in the news for dating Ellen DeGeneres for 3 years.
9. Sandra Bullock and Jesse James
In 2005, Sandra Bullock called a few guests home for what they thought was her birthday party. When they arrived, they found that it was actually her wedding to Jesse James. The couple stayed together for 5 years before parting ways in 2010.
10. Beyoncé and Jay-Z
If Beyoncé had announced her wedding and arranged for a regular ceremony, it would have started a media circus. To escape the frenzy, she simply decided to have a private affair with friends and family. The couple did have to deal with the circus, though, when they went to get a marriage license.
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For many stars, eloping really is a better idea than a regular wedding. Not only does it give them the privacy they need, at their wedding it brings in a bit of extra excitement when the press finally learns about it. Do you think eloping is the new celebrity-wedding trend?