Michael Fassbender and Alicia Vikander have enjoyed an almost decade-long relationship that began on the set of their first movie together, The Light Between Oceans, in 2014. In just a few years, they were engaged and then married. They’ve since welcomed two children.
Here’s the complete timeline to Michael Fassbender and Alicia Vikander’s relationship.
2013
The pair first met on set while filming The Light Between Oceans, which was released in 2014. The period romance cast them as a married couple, but life imitates art. Their on-screen chemistry quickly translated to something off-screen.
“We met on that job and have been seeing each other since,” Fassbender told Good Morning America in 2016. “She’s such a fierce performer, she’s so brave, she’s not afraid to bring ugly personality traits to the forefront in the character. I was just really impressed by her immediately.”
They both spoke with Entertainment Weekly in 2016 about those early days and why they keep a lot about their relationship private.
“It wasn’t the first time in a movie either of us had played somebody who is falling in love,” Fassbender said. “There is an element of separation there.”
Vikander added, “And I think we’ve made a clear statement that we keep certain things just between us. It was very easy to unite, but that’s quite personal.”
September 2016
While at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2016, Vikander told USA Today that she was first attracted to Fassbender when she saw him dancing.
“We had a boogie,” she joked. “He’s a very good dancer.”
“I felt like I couldn’t dance,” Fassbender interjected. “I thought I was pretty good, but she was there with a friend of hers, just jiving all over the place. I was like, ‘God, I feel like I’ve got two left feet.’ Then I left, defeated.”
October 2016
While at the Venice Film Festival promoting The Light Between Oceans, Vikander talked about discovering she’d be working with Fassbender and getting to know him.
“I knew that Michael was attached to play Tom, and I think he’s one of the most brilliant actors out there,” Vikander shared. “I was up for the game, but I was very nervous. … Michael’s support in those scenes were a big part of me daring to go all the way, which was needed for the role of Isabel.”
Fassbender said, “I was kind of scared when Alicia came, she was so fierce and hungry, and it was something that it’s always a great thing to see in an actor who is getting an opportunity who hasn’t been well known yet. I really felt like I had to get my shit together and just be there and be as present as she was.”
January 2016
In an interview with with E! News at the Palm Springs International Film Festival in 2016, Vikander talked about celebrating New Year’s Eve with Fassbender.
“It was not a very, very late night because I had to fly here, but we had a grill going, cooked some pasta, made a good dinner, watched some fireworks,” she said. “We counted down until midnight. It was great!”
On January 10, they made their debut as a couple at the 73rd Golden Globes. Vikander was nominated for best actress for The Danish Girl, while Fassbender was nominated for best actor for Steve Jobs.
They did not walk the red carpet, but did sit together and at one point Fassbender told reporters he was “very proud” of Vikander.
February 2016
In 2016, Vikander won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress at the 88th Academy Awards for The Danish Girl. Before accepting the award, she gave Fassbender a kiss.
August 2016
The couple made an appearance at the Venice Film Festival for The Light Between Oceans premiere.
October 2017
The couple got married in 2017 in Ibiza at the La Granja farmstead resort with a group of family and friends. Vikander described her surprise bachelorette party in France to Marie Claire in 2018.
“I was there [in Paris] for the Louis Vuitton show and suddenly got a text that says, ‘Go out. We need you right now.’ They kidnapped me for 24 hours!” Vikander laughed.
They then headed to Italy for their honeymoon.
February 2018
In a 2018 Vogue interview, Vikander shared how things have changed since she got married.
“I feel I’m more happy and content than I’ve ever been,” she shared.
She also gushed about his acting, saying, “I think he’s one of the absolute best actors I’ve worked with,” adding that though Fassbender had “done more films” than her, he was open to “new ideas and thoughts.”
Vikander explained, “He would be like, ‘I’m stuck; what should I do?’ and I would say, ‘You’re asking me?’ That was such a sweet thing.”
October 2020
During a Good Morning America interview, Vikander shared that Fassbender took her to visit her home country of Sweden for her 32nd birthday.
“My husband surprised me with a trip to Sweden,” she said. “Landed, I got a COVID test and was negative so I was able to hang out with my mom and my dad and a lot of family members I haven’t seen in a long time, so that was kind of a perfect gift.”
September 2021
In an interview with People, Vikander confirmed she and and Fassbender had welcomed their first child.
“I now have a whole new understanding of life in general,” she said. “That’s pretty beautiful, and obviously will give a lot to any of my work in the future.”
She added, “I’m enjoying finding it out in the moment right now, more than anything.”
April 2022
In an interview with Harper’s Bazaar U.K. in 2022, Vikander opened up about trying to conceive during lockdown and knowing for sure she wanted to be a mom.
“I tried to get pregnant for a while,” Vikander said. “I struggled … I didn’t think that I could get pregnant.”
Having her son was “profound,” and she changed “in every way.”
She also shared that she and Fassbender spent time during lockdown in France and described it as “a chance for my husband and me to be at home, just cooking.”
She added, “We had a routine. We worked and we met up with five other families on Zoom and worked out Monday to Friday together.”
June 2022
In June 2022, Fassbender drove for the German racing team Proton Competition at France’s Le Mans 24-hour race. Vikander was by his side and said on The Late Late Show With James Corden, “I get, like, so excited. I remember in the beginning, I thought I was going to be terrified, but instead, I go up there, and I’m like, ‘You go!’”
July 2022
In an interview with The Sunday Times, Vikander said that before the birth of her son she suffered an “extreme and painful” miscarriage.
“We have a child now, but it took us time,” she explained. “Sometimes you go through things that are tough in life and if you have an office job you can step away for a bit. But there are times that myself or colleagues have been through something and, well, I can’t understand how they went on to the red carpet afterwards.”
Vikander continued, “To be met by people asking, ‘How are you doing?’ Given what they had just been through? Most people would not be able to step out of their house.”
May 2023
The pair made an appearance at the Cannes Film Festival for Vikander’s film Firebrand.
![firebrand le jeu de la reine red carpet the 76th annual cannes film festival](https://hips.hearstapps.com/hmg-prod/images/alicia-vikander-and-michael-fassbender-attend-the-firebrand-news-photo-1731881676.jpg?resize=980:* ""Firebrand (Le Jeu De La Reine)" Red Carpet - The 76th Annual Cannes Film Festival")
July 2023
They enjoyed Paris Fashion Week, attending a Louis Vuitton event together.
July 2024
The couple welcomed a second child sometime in 2024, which Vikander revealed in an interview with ELLE.
“All women have such different experiences, and going through it a second time was definitely harder for me. But I think training made it easier,” she said. “Going through those nine months is like a marathon, so it does help if you’re strong going into it. It’s so physically demanding, and I have so much admiration for any woman who has done it.”
Aimée Lutkin is the weekend editor at ELLE.com. Her writing has appeared in Jezebel, Glamour, Marie Claire and more. Her first book, The Lonely Hunter, will be released by Dial Press in February 2022.