Jonathan Mendelsohn
Jason Ritter, 43, appeared on The Drew Barrymore Show this past Wednesday with his wife, Yellowjackets star Melanie Lynskey, 45, and revealed the heartbreaking story of how they met. While some audiences may be looking for a sweet meet-cute story, Ritter shared that their romance tale was anything but.
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During the talk show, Barrymore asked Ritter, “What was your moment when you knew [Lynskey was the one]?” Ritter responded with, “I knew how incredible Melanie was early on,” before adding “It’s not as cute of a story as you would like to think. It was messy and interesting and weird. But mixed in the mix, [I was] dealing with some alcoholism issues.”
Jason Ritter and Melanie Lynskey’s Messy Beginnings
Ritter was on the verge of tears during the conversation, saying, “At a point, I knew how amazing she was, and I thought she would be incredible for someone who deserved her, basically.” This statement seemed to make Lynskey emotional, who reached for her husband’s hand while simply saying “aw.”
Ritter continued his candor, saying, “And I didn’t feel like I was that person. I thought [I was] a little bit too crazy. So it was only after like maybe a year into not drinking where I started to go, ‘Oh, maybe I can promise some things to someone else. Maybe I can be this person.’ It’s been like a slow burn.”
Ritter’s statements brought Lynskey to tears during the show. After Ritter added, “I knew she was incredible. It was working on myself enough to feel like maybe I can be the one for her, too,” Lynskey said, “He did so much work on himself. I’m so proud of him.”
Barrymore then shared her own similar story, saying, “I haven’t had a drink — and I’m not sober, I don’t work a program — but alcohol was my poison. And I haven’t had a drink in almost four years.” Barrymore soon added, “The narrative that one creates is that I can’t be with someone, and I haven’t been in a relationship since I stopped drinking, and I’m really looking forward to, one day, not having that ‘bad girl’ narrative, the instability, the: ‘I’m not someone who’s right to not be with someone for their sake.’ ”
Ritter is an actor who is the son of the late great funnyman John Ritter. Jason Ritter recently appeared in HBO’s The Last of Us, which also featured Lynskey. Ritter will also begin appearing in the second season of Showtime’s Yellowjackets opposite his wife.
