Dakota Johnson and Coldplay frontman Chris Martin are still going strong—or so it seems.
The habitually private pair began dating years after Martin’s conscious uncoupling from ex-wife Gwyneth Paltrow, with whom he shares children Apple and Moses. Paltrow has since embraced Johnson completely, allegedly even encouraging her ex-husband to reunite with the Madame Web star after a brief split in 2019.
As far as we know, Dakota Johnson and Chris Martin have been together ever since, with recent reports suggesting the pair have low-key been engaged for years. However, in March 2024, a source told People that they were “back on,” implying the pair had secretly split and reconciled without the world knowing a thing.
Here’s everything we know about the mysterious couple’s love story, with the most recent updates up top.
2024
December 2024: In a new interview with Rolling Stone, Martin refused to discuss those Dakota Johnson breakup rumors, though writer Alex Morris claims she was mentioned a few times in passing. “It is important to say that [romantic love] is such a big factor in everything, even though it feels right to keep it precious and private,” Martin said. “I’m not denying its power.”
He later name-checked Johnson as one of his “best friends,” a list he says includes “Phil [Harvey], Dakota, Jonny [Buckland], Will [Champion], and Guy [Berryman]. My kids.”
While Martin did not technically confirm or deny their split and is known for staying friends with his exes, you can probably read between the lines that they’re still together.
August 2024: On August 16, Johnson’s rep tells People that the actor and musician “are happily together” following reports that they called off their engagement.
While a source told The Daily Mail that the couple “accepted the relationship is over” and “it’s best to move on,” Johnson’s rep denied the split to Page Six as well. “The reports are not true,” the rep said. “They are happily together.”
June 2024: The pair are “going strong,” a source tells People on June 11. “They’ve had ups and downs but now they’re definitely back on,” reports the article, which is a strange statement as we hadn’t heard any rumors of them being off. A few weeks later Johnson is spotted watching Martin’s Glastonbury Festival performance alongside his children, Apple and Moses.
March 2024: A source tells People on March 8 that the Coldplay frontman, 47, and the Madame Web star, 34, “got engaged years ago, but were in no rush to get married.” This tracks with their other comments, such as when Johnson casually referred to Martin’s kid as her stepson, and the fact that she’s occasionally been spotted wearing a large emerald on her ring finger.
2023
June 2023: In a video shared by the Daily Mail, Martin can be seen singing directly to Johnson during a set in Naples. Johnson blows him a kiss in response.
2022
November 2022: In a full-circle moment, fellow concertgoers spot Johnson dancing her heart out at another Coldplay show in Buenos Aires.
June 2022: Johnson tells Vanity Fair that she loves to tour with Martin when she’s not working. And Martin returns the favor by visiting her on the Boston set of the superhero flick Madame Web.
January 2022: Martin makes an adorable cameo during a virtual Sundance Film Festival Q&A session to promote Johnson’s new movie Cha Cha Real Smooth. When technical difficulties strike, Johnson calls Martin over to her for technical support. In the clip, she giggles and he throws up a peace sign before quietly exiting the room.
2021
December 2021: Johnson describes her home life with Martin in a cover story interview with Elle. “We go out sometimes, but we both work so much that it’s nice to be at home and be cozy and private,” she says. “Most of the partying takes place inside my house.”
October 2021: Martin calls Johnson “my universe” during a concert in London.
July 2021: The couple goes on a romantic getaway to Palma de Mallorca, Spain. While on vacation, they’re seen taking a boat ride and wearing matching baseball caps.
March 2021: Unconfirmed engagement rumors start to swirl again when Johnson is seen sporting a sizable emerald ring on her wedding finger.
February 2021: People reports that Johnson and Martin have been living together at his $12.5 million Malibu home for months. The two can frequently be seen driving around in the vintage Ford Mustang Martin bought her the previous year.
2020
March 2020: The couple celebrates Martin’s 43rd birthday with his children at Disneyland. A few weeks later Johnson’s close friend Olivia Wilde shares a clip of the happy couple on Instagram. In it Johnson jokingly performs a hand-washing tutorial while pretending Martin’s hands are her own.
February 2020: Johnson wins major girlfriend points for directing the music video for Coldplay’s “Cry Cry Cry.”
January 2020: When Paltrow graces the cover of Harper’s Bazaar, she gushes about Johnson and the blended family they now share. “I love her,” Paltrow says. “I can see how it would seem weird because it’s sort of unconventional. But I think, in this case, just having passed through it iteratively, I just adore her. I always start to think of the ampersand sign—what else can you bring in, instead of being resistant to or being made insecure by? There’s so much juice in leaning in to something like that.
“It’s not like there’s a finish line: ‘Oh, we consciously uncoupled; we’re done,’” she continues. “It’s a lifelong commitment to constantly reinvent your relationship with your ex, which you do presumably because you have children together. I don’t see a reason to do it if you don’t have children together. Some people do. But I think we put all the hard work in at the beginning. I would say very rarely is it difficult now. We’ve learned how to communicate with each other. We love each other. We laugh. We have the best of each other. It’s really nice. It makes you feel like you don’t have to lose.”
2019
December 2019: For Christmas, Johnson joins Martin, Paltrow, Apple, and Moses on a family trip to Aspen.
October 2019: Martin makes the internet swoon when he dedicates Coldplay’s “My Universe” to Johnson during a London performance. “This is about my universe and she’s here,” Martin says, gesturing to Johnson in the audience.
Johnson and Martin show up to her 30th birthday party together (yes, that birthday party). Paltrow attends as well and wishes the actor a happy birthday on Instagram.
August 2019: Luckily, the two end up reuniting by the end of the summer. According to Us Weekly, Paltrow played a key role in “pushing” the pair to reconcile. The public catches wind of the news after the two are photographed at Johnson’s wrap party for Covers. And the following month, Martin joins Johnson at the premiere of The Peanut Butter Falcon.
June 2019: Johnson and Martin part ways after 18 months of dating. Per The Sunday Express, the breakup stems from conflicting visions of the future. “Chris made it clear he wants more kids as soon as possible, but Dakota’s career has really taken off and that’s the last thing she wanted to think about right away,” a source says. “It got to the point last month where a light seemed to flick on in both their heads and they realized they were pulling in completely opposite directions, so they decided to call it a day.” A friend of the couple even tells The Sun, “There was talk of engagement” prior to the split, “which has come as a real surprise to everyone.”
April 2019: The couple both go barefoot for a walk in the park with her Jack Russell terrier–schnauzer mix, Zeppelin. The outing marks their last before putting their relationship on a brief hiatus.
2018
November 2018: Martin and Johnson make a pilgrimage back to Sushi Park, the restaurant where they first sparked dating rumors, shortly after hitting their one-year relationship milestone.
A source tells Us Weekly around this time that the couple will “be engaged soon. Chris is head over heels.” The insider also claims that Martin is holding off on an engagement until after Paltrow weds Brad Falchuk in September. “He wanted to make sure the kids didn’t have too much change all at once,” the source said. “He’s a great dad.”
Martin then spends Thanksgiving with Paltrow and their two children, Apple, 15, and Moses, 13. A source tells E!, “Gwyneth thinks [Johnson] is lovely. She gets on very well with her and is happy for Chris. They’ve spent a good amount of time together and have a very nice friendship.”
October 2018: TMZ falsely reports that Johnson and Martin are expecting, claiming that a celebrity-studded gender-reveal party was taking place at Martin’s home, where pink and blue balloons were seen floating overhead. But representatives quickly clarify that it was a birthday party.
During an Ellen appearance the following month, Johnson joked about the mix-up. “The only thing I’m pregnant with is a lot of really good ideas,” she quips. “But not any babies.”
September 2018: It wouldn’t be a whirlwind celebrity romance without matching ink! At the beginning of the month, Johnson and Martin quietly debut identical infinity sign tattoos on their forearms. A few weeks later Johnson coyly confirms her budding romance with Martin in her Tatler cover story interview. Finally!
July 2018: The pair stroll into a Radiohead concert in Boston hand in hand, seemingly on a double date with Breaking Bad star Aaron Paul and his wife.
May 2018: Johnson’s mother, actor Melanie Griffith, gives a glowing review of Martin to People: “I adore him. But she is very private about her life and I respect that.”
February 2018: Johnson and Martin are photographed holding hands and chatting with Drew Barrymore outside Ellen DeGeneres’s 60th birthday party. Paltrow and then fiancé Brad Falchuk attend the bash as well.
January 2018: Johnson and Martin step out on a few more dates in the new year: dinner at Soho House, long walks on the beach in Malibu, and, memorably, their first public appearance, at Stella McCartney’s autumn 2018 runway show. The lovebirds opt to use a private entrance instead of walking the carpet together, but inside the event they’re clearly an item.
“They walked in holding hands and Dakota was not letting go—she was super into the PDA,” an onlooker reveals to People. “When Chris let go of her hand, she slipped her arm through his.”
That same month Johnson’s father, actor Don Johnson, offers up his take on the relationship rumors in an interview with Digital Spy. “Yeah, that’s…uh, troubling, isn’t it?” he says. “No, she’s a big girl; she can handle herself.”
2017
December 2017: The dating rumors pick up speed ahead of the holidays. “Chris sends Dakota his music to get her opinion,” a source shares with Us Weekly. “It’s more than just a fling.”
November 2017: Fans notice Johnson standing in the sound booth at a Coldplay concert in Buenos Aires, the final stop on the band’s Head Full of Dreams tour. A week later Martin and Johnson are seen canoodling during a trip to Israel, where they catch a Nick Cave concert and hang out with the Aussie rocker over appetizers in Herzliya.
October 2017: Johnson and Martin spark dating rumors after being spotted at Sushi Park in Los Angeles. Years later Johnson would go on to tell Vanity Fair that they met through a friend and “never really left each other.”
“Chris and Dakota walked in together and sat at a table for two tucked away in the corner,” an eyewitness tells Us Weekly of the fateful sushi date. “They seemed very happy to see each other and immediately jumped into conversation. She was catching him up on work and the different projects she has coming up. She was telling him where she is going to be and asking him what he thought. They both seemed to really respect each other’s opinions. Chris was very charming and personable. His face lit up when he was talking to her. He hummed a little bit and asked her what she thought of a song. She clearly loves his music and was really into it. They were flirty and laughing the entire meal. He paid for dinner and held the door for her. They both thanked the chefs on the way out.”
This post will be updated.
