Charlie Hunnam made a notable comment about his personal life while attending the 2026 Critics Choice Awards. During a pre-show interview, the actor referred to longtime partner Morgana McNelis as his “wife,” prompting fans to question whether they may have quietly taken a major step together.
Charlie Hunnam Refers To Longtime Love Morgana McNelis As His ‘Wife’
Hunnam attended the 2026 Critics Choice Awards after earning a nomination for Best Actor in a Limited Series or Movie Made for Television for his role in “Monster: The Ed Gein Story.” While speaking with ExtraTV on the red carpet, the actor casually referred to McNelis as his wife while discussing how he spent New Year’s Day.
“It’s good, we did it quiet,” the “Sons of Anarchy” star said. “I always like to ring in the new year mainly on the 1st rather than on the 31st. So my wife and I went to bed early, got up, had a really beautiful hike and came in, set some intentions.”
He added that he felt he “got the year started correct.”
Hunnam and McNelis have been together for nearly two decades and have largely kept their relationship private. The couple made a rare public appearance together at the 2025 Emmy Awards in September, where they posed for photos on the red carpet.
The ‘Sons of Anarchy’ Star Has Previously Addressed Marriage Views
The comment stood out given Hunnam’s past public statements about marriage. During a previous SiriusXM interview, the actor described himself as “indifferent” to the idea, a remark he later walked back in a 2020 interview with TooFab.
“You know what? That was a stupid thing to say,” Hunnam said. “I really regretted saying that, cause I actually didn’t mean it at all. It was just, frankly, some stupid (expletive) I said in the heat of the moment.”
Hunnam acknowledged that the comment hurt McNelis’ feelings, explaining that his longtime partner was “very eager to get married.”
He also clarified how he views commitment. “The reality is I sort of consider myself married. I’ve been with my girlfriend for 14 years,” he said at the time. “The official government sanctioning of it doesn’t mean anything to me, but the romance of it means an enormous amount.”
Asked whether he planned to get married one day, Hunnam emphasized the importance of family and stability. “It doesn’t really make me nervous because we’ve been together for so long,” he said. “I couldn’t foresee that happening with us because we know each other so well.”
Charlie Hunnam Shares More About Life With Morgana McNelis
While walking the carpet at the Critics Choice Awards, Hunnam also shared a light moment from home life during an interview with E!’s Justin Sylvester. The actor revealed that McNelis asked him to stop using the voice of serial killer Ed Gein while filming.
“She did,” Hunnam said. “I was slipping in and out of it all the time and she was saying, ‘Dude. You have to stop with the voice.’ At breakfast, it’s a little too much.”
Hunnam was previously married to actress Katharine Towne. The two wed in 1999 when he was 18 and divorced three years later.
