Minka Kelly had a deeply traumatic relationship in her teens. Then she found love in her 40s.

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Oh, the magic of a Netflix Christmas movie. We all adore settling in for the guaranteed silliness and festive cheer they bring. And everybody is buzzing about Netflix's newest drop, Champagne Problems.

The woman at the heart of the holiday romance? None other than the talented Minka Kelly. But Champagne Problems isn't her only Netflix hit, as she's also captivating audiences in the drama, Ransom Canyon. While her on-screen romances keep us glued to our screens, it's her beautiful, real-life love story that has us truly swooning.

For the last few years, the 45-year-old actress has been dating Imagine Dragons frontman, Dan Reynolds.

Watch the trailer for Champagne Problems. Article continues after video.

The pair were first connected by a mutual friend. However, instead of immediately diving into an in-person date, they spent a deeply personal month speaking on the phone. Their early connection wasn't based on small talk; instead, they traded excerpts from personal books and intimate song lyrics.

"She's like, 'Well, if you're going to share your art, I can share something with you, but it's very vulnerable for me. Do you want to do this or not?'" Reynolds recalled of their early exchanges. 

"She was very scared for me to read the book... just as much as I was scared for her to hear a song that I'd written."

This vulnerable exchange, which included the actress sharing her memoir, Tell Me Everything, allowed them to bypass the typical dating barriers.

"After about a month, we met in person and ever since then, we've been attached at the hip," the singer shared with People in July 2024. "Minka and I are in a really happy, healthy relationship."

For Reynolds, reading Kelly's memoir was a unique way to gain deep insight into the woman he was falling for.

"It was a really strange and awesome way to meet someone because I was hearing all her life stories from youth to now, and she had a really hard, colourful, beautiful life. Getting to read it all before you even meet somebody... I've never had that kind of introduction to someone," he said.

That memoir revealed the difficult, "colourful" journey Kelly has been on — including a traumatic experience in her youth.

Image: Instagram/minkakelly.

Kelly has spoken openly about her past, including a relationship in her teens that left her deeply scarred. The experience, which she recounts in Tell Me Everything, highlighted a period of vulnerability and pain.

In Tell Me Everything, she details the traumatic and unstable environment of her youth, culminating in a difficult choice at age 17.

At 17, Kelly moved in with her high school boyfriend, "Rudy," and his family. Rudy quickly became controlling and exploitative, insisting on taking graphic photos and videos of Kelly. She recalls performing "raunchier" scenes on camera, noting, "I'd become such a master at leaving my body when things were uncomfortable."

Years later, Rudy allegedly attempted to sell the footage, forcing Kelly to pay $50,000 to buy back the film. His abuse continued, including calling her a "slut" and initiating sex with a female friend in front of her after Kelly declined his coercion. The day after this humiliation, Kelly discovered she was pregnant.

Despite her estranged mother returning to suggest they raise the baby together, Kelly felt she couldn't bring a child into the same unstable, traumatic cycle she had endured. Her mother was poor and had no home or insurance.

"I couldn't imagine bringing a baby into what my mother brought me into. Absolutely not," she writes. "Raising a child with my mother would only continue this family trauma... Hadn't there been enough damage already?"

Kelly went ahead with an abortion, making a devastating but necessary choice to break the cycle of intergenerational pain.

But now, in her relationship with Reynolds, it appears Kelly has finally found the profound sense of safety and love she deserves. In a moving tribute, the actress shared just how healing her partner has been.

Image: Instagram/minkakelly.

"This beautiful man has healed wounds in me he did not inflict — simply by being himself. By embodying true masculinity. The kind that is vulnerable, honest and loving," she wrote on Instagram in celebration of Reynolds' birthday.

While Kelly was previously linked to names like Trevor Noah and Reynolds was married to singer Aja Volkman, they have now focused on building a future together. Reynolds and his ex-wife have children, and introducing Kelly into their lives has been handled with great care.

"The kids really love Minka and really love their mum, and that's okay," Reynolds noted. "We view it as kind of bonuses to the family: more people to love, more people to help."

He praised Kelly's gentle approach to their new dynamic. 

"She's done a really incredible job of being sensitive and careful on her end as well."

The connection also seems to extend into her professional life. In May 2025, she shared that Dan even helped her prepare for her role in Ransom Canyon.

"I'll usually ask my partner to show me how it goes," she said about practising piano for the series. "And then he'll show me where my hands go. Then I'll just do it over and over again until I've memorised it."

Feature Image: Getty.