He’s faster than a speeding bullet, cuter than a cuddly kitten (okay, almost), and he appears to have swept Hallmark star Rachael Leigh Cook right off her feet.
On July 29, 2025, People published photos of Cook holding hands in Los Angeles with actor Brandon Routh, who has played the Man of Steel multiple times since starring in 2006’s “Superman Returns.”
Routh has also starred in two Hallmark movies with rom-com queen Kimberley Sustad — 2014’s “The Nine Lives of Christmas” and 2021’s “The Nine Kittens of Christmas.” That makes him and Cook the newest real-life Hallmark couple, and we are here for it!
Brandon Routh & Rachael Leigh Cook Visited His Hometown Together in February
Cook and Routh, both 45, were photographed smiling and holding hands outside a movie theater on July 25. It’s not known when Routh and Cook started dating, but in late February, the two posed for a photo at an eatery while visiting Routh’s hometown of Des Moines, Iowa.
Cook is scheduled to return to Des Moines in September for all three days of GalaxyCon, but Routh is not currently in the celebrity lineup. They are, however, conveniently scheduled to both appear in mid-December at Christmas Con, the largest fan convention for holiday movie buffs.
Routh and Cook’s movie date took place two weeks after he and fellow actress Courtney Ford finalized their divorce on July 10, according to People.
Married for 17 years, the former couple announced their amicable split on January 10, just as they were scrambling to evacuate their home during the Los Angeles fires. After Ford filed divorce papers on January 8, People reported the news, so they quickly issued a statement, noting that their focus was on co-parenting their 12-year-old son, Leo.
“After 21 years together and 17 years of marriage, we have decided to begin a new journey,” the statement said, “and enter this next chapter of life as friends and co-parents. We are now and forever rooting for each other as we move through this wild adventure called life.”
Cook, meanwhile, was married for 15 years to fellow actor Daniel Gillies until they announced their separation in 2019, per People, and officially divorced a year later. They share two kids, Charlotte, 11, and Theodore, 10, whom Cook took to the “Freakier Friday” premiere on July 22.
Rachael Leigh Cook & Brandon Routh Are in Good Company With Other Real-Life Hallmark Couples
EntertainmentNow/GettyAs just the latest Hallmark actors to pair up in real life, Routh and Cook are in good company.
In April, “Love in the Great Smoky Mountains,” co-stars Arielle Kebbel and Zach Roerig, both 40, went public with their romance when he delivered flowers and a passionate kiss to Kebbel during a fan convention meet-and-greet event in Georgia.
Meanwhile, “The Jane Mysteries” star Stephen Huszar and Katie Cassidy are still going strong two years after meeting on the set of their 2023 Hallmark movie, “A Royal Christmas Crush.” He even told EntertainmentNow in late 2024 that marriage was a definite possibility with Cassidy.
The couple who wins for most recent wedding is “When Calls The Heart” stars Erin Krakow and Ben Rosenbaum, who announced their surprise nuptials on June 23. Their best buds and WCTH co-stars Kevin McGarry and Kayla Wallace were close behind, having married a year earlier. Meanwhile, WCTH star Chris McNally has been with his longtime love, fellow Hallmark actress Julie Gonzalo, since 2017.
Meghan Ory and John Reardon, who co-starred in 2024’s “Believe in Christmas,” may have the longest track record among the Hallmark couples. They celebrated their 17th wedding anniversary on July 14.
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New Hallmark Couple Alert: Rachael Leigh Cook’s New Leading Man is a Hallmark Hero