Rita Ora and Taika Waititi’s personal and professional lives often collide.
The singer and filmmaker first sparked dating rumors in 2021, and married the following year. In the time since, they have stunned at Hollywood events, collaborated on music videos and even co-hosted the MTV Europe Music Awards.
“I’ve always wanted the fairytale, that’s what I grew up loving,” Rita raved on a September 2022 episode of the Greatest Night Ever podcast, when discussing her relationship with the Thor: Ragnarok director. “For me, it was always about that love, finding a partner, so I’m really happy I did.”
Their romance has also influenced their work, such as Rita’s album, You & I, which features the title track inspired by their wedding day. “My biggest supporter and advocate is Taika,” she told PEOPLE in July 2023.
The pair have shared the stage before, but their latest collaboration was a surprise to Rita when Taika was revealed to be Lucky Duck on The Masked Singer. Despite serving on the panel for years — including on the show’s U.K. version — the songstress was caught off guard by the sight.
From their red carpet debut to co-hosting the MTV Europe Music Awards and The Masked Singer, here’s everything to know about Rita Ora and Taika Waititi’s relationship.
They were friends for six years
tephane Cardinale – Corbis/Corbis via Getty
Rita Ora and Taika Waititi attend the MTV EMAs 2024 held at Co-op Live on November 10, 2024 in Manchester, England.
Rita and Taika started as friends and eventually became romantically involved when they both found themselves working in Australia, as she revealed during a February 2023 appearance on The Drew Barrymore Show.
“He’s so, so great. We’re friends, and we met long before we decided to ruin everything,” Rita quipped. “We were friends for six years.”
The “Poison” songstress explained that they experienced a particular moment when their relationship evolved, and didn’t look back.
“It’s a really cool dynamic and we both kind of do our own thing and I’m very happy right now,” Rita shared.
They sparked dating rumors in 2021 before making their red carpet debut
Ian West/PA Images via Getty
Rita Ora and Taika Waititi attending the 2021 MTV EMA awards at the Papp Laszlo Budapest Sportarena, in Budapest, Hungary.
Rumors of a Rita and Taika romance started swirling in April 2021, when the “Anywhere” vocalist posted a picture on Instagram of them in an embrace.
“Good times, memories, random things on my phone and the ones I love,” she captioned the now-deleted picture, adding a red heart emoji.
A few months later, in August 2021, the couple made their red carpet debut at the L.A. premiere of The Suicide Squad, in which Taika appeared in the movie as Ratcatcher.
They married in 2022
Michael Buckner/Variety via Getty
Rita Ora and Taika Waititi at the 76th Primetime Emmy Awards held at Peacock Theater on September 15, 2024 in Los Angeles, California.
Murmurs of marriage were ignited when the duo were spotted wearing what appeared to be gold wedding bands on their ring fingers. In August 2022, a source confirmed to PEOPLE that the director and singer got married in a “very small” ceremony.
During an interview with Heart Breakfast in January 2023, Rita revealed that there was, indeed, a wedding. “They say everything happens for a reason. I am officially off the market, people!” she said.
Later in the conversation, Rita described the intimate wedding as “just nice and perfect.”
“It was really sweet … Sorry, it’s not that interesting! One day I will throw a big party,” she continued. “I will figure out the time to have a big, big party.”
They co-hosted the 2022 MTV Europe Music Awards
Andreas Rentz/Getty
Taika Waititi and Rita Ora are seen on stage during the MTV Europe Music Awards 2022 held at PSD Bank Dome on November 13, 2022 in Duesseldorf, Germany.
Over the years, the couple have dazzled on the red carpet and at other glamorous events, which has even involved working together.
Rita and Taika co-hosted the 2022 MTV Europe Music Awards, which took place in Düsseldorf, Germany. During the telecast, they presented an award to Taylor Swift, who told the couple they were “thriving” while hosting the ceremony.
In addition to taking the stage with Taika in 2022, the pop star has hosted the MTV Europe Music Awards two other times — in 2017 and 2024.
Taika inspired Rita’s 2023 album, You & I
Amy Sussman/Getty
Rita Ora and Taika Waititi attend the Los Angeles premiere of Searchlight Pictures’ “Next Goal Wins” at AMC The Grove 14 on November 14, 2023 in Los Angeles, California.
Rita took her feelings about Taika to the recording studio for her 2023 album, You & I. She wrote the title track the day after her wedding, as she told PEOPLE in July of that year.
“I was like, ‘Listen dude, I got married yesterday. I’m very hungover, but I think we should write the ultimate wedding song,’ ” she said, recalling a conversation with producer Cirkut, with whom she wrote the track.
The song, “You Only Love Me,” featured actual voicemails from Taika. “I was like, ‘I think it’d be cool to really give people an insight into our lives,’ ” she explained.
Taika also directed the music videos for the album’s first two singles, “You Only Love Me” and “Praising You.”
“I love bouncing ideas with him. It’s really cool and easy, and he’s got really great perspective and taste,” Rita said about working with her husband. “With this album and everything, I think it’s just set a really great precedent for what we could potentially do.”
Taika surprised Rita as Lucky Duck on The Masked Singer
Michael Becker/FOX
Taika Waititi and Rita Ora on ‘The Masked Singer’ in season 13.
Rita and Taika appeared on The Masked Singer together — even if she didn’t know it then.
The 13th season of the competition show featured the singer as a panelist and the mysterious Lucky Duck character.
During the semi-finals on April 30, the duck detective danced his tail feathers off to Queen’s “I Want to Break Free” before revealing himself as Taika — shocking Rita.
“Are you kidding? I thought you were the most annoying thing on this whole show,” she joked as she strutted onstage to kiss her husband after his unmasking.
“I love you so much,” she told him. “This is kind of your dream come true. You’ve always wanted to be a pop star. This is your moment.”
Read the original article on People
