“Save the Last Dance” star Julia Stiles and filmmaker Preston J. Cook met on the set of her film “Blackway” in 2014. The couple has been hard at work, both on and off the set ever since. They welcomed three children in five years and still managed to film several successful projects together.
The busy actress and dancer has been a success on Season 35 of “Dancing with the Stars.” Let’s meet the team cheering her on from home.
Romance Bloomed On Set
Prior to meeting Julia on the set of “Blackway,” a thriller released in 2015, Preston had been building a career in Hollywood since the early 2000s. He started out as an actor on “The L Word” and “Smallville,” transitioning to filmmaking around 2011. He worked as a cameraman on popular shows like HGTV’s Love It or List It, and later on films such as “Big Eyes”(2014), starring Amy Adams, “The Revenant” (2015), starring Leonardo DiCaprio, and “War for the Planet of the Apes” (2017), starring Andy Serkis and Woody Harrelson.
A Wedding and Three Babies
Preston popped the question while on a holiday vacation in Isla Grande, Colombia in 2015. The two spent their time snorkeling and exploring the island with their families. To announce their Christmas Eve engagement, Julia shared a sweet picture of her new ring while holding hands with Preston, captioned, “BEST CHRISTMAS EVER!” Julia later told co-host Kelly Rippa on “Live!” that the proposal was “a total surprise.”
Julia and Preston were not in a rush to get down the aisle and spent a few years dating, keeping most of their relationship out of the public eye. The “Ten Things I Hate About You” actress told PEOPLE in 2016 that “We’re really slow on the wedding planning, so I haven’t been soliciting advice.” The couple made things more public at their red carpet debut together in February 2017 at the 70th annual British Film Academy Awards (BAFTA) in London.
In June of 2017, it was confirmed that Julia and Preson were welcoming their first child together. The couple walked down the aisle later in 2017, while Julia was pregnant with their first child, Strummer. They welcomed two more children to their family: Arlo in 2022 and Henry in 2023.
GettyWorking Parents
The couple has been hard at work since they began dating in 2014, and adding to their family hasn’t slowed them down. Julia credits Preston’s amazing resume for their ability to work together on projects like “Jason Bourne” (2016) and the Irish-British TV drama series “Riviera”, which ran from 2017 to 2020.
For now, Preston will be home with the three children while Julia is taking her skills back to the stage on “Dancing with the Stars” Season 35. On their third wedding anniversary, Julia posted on Instagram, “Taking a breath to wish my main man, my lurve, a Happy Anniversary…. Thank you for holding down the fort while I live my dance dream, and being cool with my @ezra.sosa obsession.”
Tune in to see Julia Stiles and Ezra Sosa work toward Mirrorball Trophy!
