When Aaron Taylor-Johnson was 19, he asked Sam, 42, to marry him. They hadn't even been on a date.

Aaron and Sam Taylor-Johnson are big names in their own right.

Both from the UK, Aaron, an actor, has starred in countless movies, including Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging and Bullet Train, and won a Golden Globe. 

Meanwhile, Sam, a filmmaker and photographer, has directed her fair share of movies (Nowhere Boy, Fifty Shades of Grey), and has signed on to do the Amy Winehouse biopic, Back to Black.

As far as celebrity couples go, the Taylor-Johnsons have received far more scrutiny than most because of their 23-year-age gap. But that's never bothered them.

Watch the trailer for Bullet Train here. Post continues below.

Aaron (then just Johnson) and Sam (née Taylor-Wood) first met in 2008, when Aaron auditioned for the role of John Lennon in Nowhere Boy, Sam's feature film debut.

At 18, Aaron had just a handful of films under his belt, while Sam, then 41, was a renowned artist, director and mother of two daughters from her previous marriage.

Aaron still remembers what Sam was wearing the day they met.

"I remember it very, very clearly," the actor told Harper's Bazaar in 2019. "This white shirt that she still has, that I love. It definitely changed my life, though not in the way I expected."

Aaron and Sam Taylor-Johnson in 2009. Image: Getty.

Although they were both professional while filming the movie, Aaron proposed to Sam as soon as they wrapped.

"As soon as we finished, he told me he was going to marry me," Sam told the publication. "We had never been on a date, or even kissed."

"And a year to the minute after we met, exactly one year to the minute, I got down on one knee and asked her to marry me," Aaron said. 

"I knew instantly that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with this person."

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Sam Taylor-Johnson (@samtaylorjohnson)

The age gap meant nothing.

"When I met Sam, I'd already lived a life far beyond that of most of my contemporaries – I didn't relate to anyone my age. I just feel that we're on the same wavelength," Aaron told The Telegraph UK in 2019.

While Sam told The Sunday Times: "We had this intense connection. He was very intense and absolutely mind made-up."

The couple announced their engagement at the UK premiere of Nowhere Boy in 2009, and in July 2010, they welcomed their first daughter, Wylda Rae.

Two years later, in 2012, their second daughter, Romy Hero, was born. And in June, they got married, and changed their last name to Taylor-Johnson.

Of the name change, Aaron told the Evening Standard: "I just don't see why women need to take the man's name. I wanted to be a part of her just as much as she wanted to be part of me."

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Sam Taylor-Johnson (@samtaylorjohnson)

Although both have continued to work since, Aaron prefers raising their children.

"I get more fulfilment from being a father than I do from being an actor," he said in a 2017 interview with Mr Porter. "I'm still constantly wanting to give it up."

The couple currently have three of the four kids under one roof, and two of them are teenagers.

"Teenagers, man," Aaron told Esquire in 2023. "I’ve got teenagers."

While neither Aaron nor Sam about the commentary surrounding their age-gap relationship, they admit it was hard to deal with in the early years.

"The attention was intrusive," the actor told New York Magazine.

"But having to deal with that early in my career probably got me to a place where I can more quickly just go, 'Oh, f*** it' instead of wanting to rip someone's head off for asking questions I don't like," he added.

While Sam gave The Hollywood Reporter her two cents on it: "If I gave a second thought to other people, I would be the unhappiest person, probably still in a miserable marriage.

"People like to talk about it. I'm like, 'Yeah, but it works better than my last marriage.' It's lasted longer than a lot of my friends' marriages."

In 2017, Aaron shared he got a tattoo of his wife's name on his chest near his heart. In 2021, for their 10th wedding anniversary, Sam did the same.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Doctor Woo (@_dr_woo_)

The couple also renewed their vows to celebrate the milestone.

"It was a celebration of love and joy!" Aaron captioned a photo from the event on Instagram. 

"A decade of marriage. It was a magical, unforgettable day, and the sun did not stop shining on us both... we are blessed beyond belief. Sammy you are my love, my life, my soulmate, my wife, my world!" 

While Sam wrote: "10 glorious years. My incredible husband, father to all four girls. I love you, I love you, I love you. Love conquers all."

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Sam Taylor-Johnson (@samtaylorjohnson)

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Sam Taylor-Johnson (@samtaylorjohnson)

And the secret to their success?

Aaron told Mr Porter it was all to do with not analysing their relationship.

"I just know that it works. I feel secure and loved and safe," he said. 

"We have this very deep connection. We're just in sync."

This article was originally published in July 2022, and has been updated since with new information. 

Feature image: Getty.