Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick's Relationship Timeline

Sarah Jessica Parker and her Sex and the City character Carrie Bradshaw may seem alike in many ways (their risk-taking style, West Village residency), but one thing that sets the two apart is their quest for true love. Carrie's was complicated, and it took years before she and Big eventually made it down the aisle. SJP and Matthew Broderick's happily-ever-after, on the other hand, is going strong after three decades together.  

After meeting in 1991 through Parker's older brothers Pippin and Toby at the siblings' New York theater company, Sarah Jessica and Matthew got married six years later (even before the iconic HBO series premiered). During their 26-year marriage, SJP and Broderick welcomed three children together — son James and twin daughters Marion and Tabitha. Here's a complete look back at their relationship.   

November 1991: Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick meet for the first time.

SJP and Broderick's paths first crossed in the early '90s when the actress's older brothers Pippin and Toby introduced the two at their New York City theater company Naked Angels, where Broderick had just directed a play.

After their initial meeting, Broderick then asked Parker out via a voice message on her answering machine. “He left a very charming, very self-effacing message on the machine,” Parker told the New York Times in 1996. “You know, ‘Hi, it's Matthew Broderick.’ You had to use your last name.”

March 1993: Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick attend their first major red carpet together.

While not technically their red carpet debut, SJP and Matthew attended their first major award show together (hand-in-hand) at the Oscars in 1993.

March 1996: Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick star on Broadway together.

Fans finally got to see the real-life couple star alongside each other in the Broadway production of How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying in March 1996. Ahead of their debut on stage, SJP gushed to The Los Angeles Times about her co-star boyfriend, telling the outlet: "He's probably the funniest fellow I've met in my whole life. "He's so bright, so handsome. I think he's the most handsome man I've seen in my life. And he inspires me. I'm mad for him, totally."

May 1997: Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick get married.

After nearly six years of dating, Parker and Broderick surprised 100 of their closest friends and family with a secret wedding in New York City. Rather than white, the bride opted for a ruffled black dress from Morgane Le Fay — a decision she later regretted.

"I was too embarrassed to get married in white, and both Matthew and I were reluctant to have people pay so much attention to us,” SJP once told Marie Claire about the couple's nontraditional nuptials, adding: "Which is ridiculous because that's when you can relish the attention when it's natural. We treated it like it was a big party on a Monday night, and I regret it."

June 1998: Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick attend the premiere of Sex and the City.  

Broderick supported his wife at the premiere of HBO's first screening of Sex and the City in 1998 — after all, he is the one who convinced her to take the role.

October 2002: Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick welcome their first child.

On October 28, 2002, Parker and Broderick quietly welcomed their first child, a baby boy called James Wilke, who was named after his late grandfather, James Broderick.

June 2009: Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick welcome twins.

Nearly seven years after the arrival of James, SJP and Matthew welcomed twin daughters, Marion and Tabitha, via surrogate on June 22, 2009.

A year later, Parker opened up about her fertility struggles during an interview with Vogue, revealing that she and Broderick "tried and tried and tried and tried and tried to get pregnant, but it just was not to be the conventional way." She added, "I would give birth as often as I could if I could. I cherished all the milestones, the good and the bad.”

June 2014: Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick make their first public appearance with their kids.

Sarah Jessica and Matthew step out publicly for the first time as a family of five at the actor's late mother Patricia Broderick's art opening in the Hamptons in June 2014.

February 2020: Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick reunite on Broadway.

SJP and Broderick returned to the Broadway stage together for the first time in decades with the pre-run of their show, Plaza Suite. However, it was later shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In March 2020, the couple spoke with WSJ. Magazine about why it took so long for them to work together again. "We very rarely both work at the same time," Broderick said.

"This is the first time since we've had three children that we … are even prepared [to work together]," Parker added. "And it's hard. We have a son who's about to be away for spring semester. But I say all the time, there are families with parents serving in the military who are away all the time, you know? Just endless, impossible situations."

April 2022: Matthew Broderick talks about knowing Sarah Jessica Parker was "the one."

On an appearance on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen, Broderick told the host about the moment he knew he wanted to be with Parker forever. "Oh, the first time I met her," Broderick said. "I saw her walking down the street and thought, 'That's it.'"

December 2022: Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick make a rare red carpet appearance with their three children.

SJP and Broderick, who do their best to keep their children away from the spotlight, had a rare family night out with their three kids (who are all grown up now, might we add) at the opening night of Broadway's Some Like it Hot in New York City on December 11, 2022.

June 2023: Sarah Jessica Parker says she and Matthew Broderick never spent a night apart.

Parker revealed that she and Broderick rarely spent time away from each other during their 31 years of being a couple. "We had our first official date on March 8 of 1992, and we’ve been together ever since," Parker said during an interview on The Howard Stern Show. "We have never spent a night apart since then, with the exception of work on location, or his mother was ill for a bit, so he went to take care of her, but from that first night, we’ve never been apart.”