If you were scrolling through your feed back in early 2022, you probably remember the collective "Wait, what?" that happened when news broke that Bill Hader and Anna Kendrick had been dating for over a year. It was one of those Hollywood pairings that made total sense once you heard it, yet nobody actually saw it coming. Two of the funniest, most self-deprecating people in the business managed to pull off a total stealth romance right under our noses.
Honestly, in an era where every celebrity coffee run is documented by a fleet of paparazzi, the fact that they kept things quiet for nearly two years is kind of a miracle.
The Noelle Connection: Where It All Started
Most people assume they met on the set of the 2019 Disney+ Christmas movie Noelle. In the film, they played siblings—Nick and Noelle Kringle—which, looking back, makes the eventual real-life romance a little funny to think about. But here’s the thing: they didn't actually start dating while filming.
They had known each other for years before that. Kendrick had hosted Saturday Night Live back in 2014, and while Hader had already left the cast by then, the comedy circles in New York and LA are tiny. They were friendly, they moved in the same worlds, but the timing was never quite right.
It wasn't until late 2020—well after Noelle had wrapped and the world had largely retreated indoors due to the pandemic—that things actually took a romantic turn.
The Privacy Shield
You've probably noticed that neither Bill nor Anna is the type to post "soft launch" photos on Instagram or do "73 Questions" videos in their living rooms. They are notoriously private.
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Hader has been very open about why he keeps his personal life locked down: he has three daughters with his ex-wife, Maggie Carey. He’s mentioned in interviews that his kids just want him to be "Dad"—the guy who watches Encanto with them for the 50th time—and he doesn't want their lives complicated by his dating history splashed across the tabloids.
Kendrick is the same way. She’s joked about her "boring" life and rarely names her partners in interviews. This shared philosophy is basically why they were able to date for a year before a single "source" leaked the news to People magazine in January 2022.
The Timeline of a Stealth Romance
So, how did it actually go down? If we look at the timeline, it's pretty clear they were a "pandemic couple."
- Late 2017 - Early 2018: They film Noelle in Vancouver and Phoenix. At the time, Hader was newly separated from Maggie Carey and Kendrick was still linked to cinematographer Ben Richardson.
- July 2020: Hader and Rachel Bilson break up after a brief, high-profile relationship that included a Golden Globes red carpet debut.
- Late 2020: Hader and Kendrick quietly begin seeing each other.
- January 2022: The news finally breaks. Sources describe them as "hysterical" together, constantly making each other laugh.
- June 2022: Only a few months after the world found out they were a thing, Entertainment Tonight reports that they’ve called it quits.
Two years is a long time in Hollywood years, especially when you spend most of it in a private bubble.
Why Did They Break Up?
Neither of them has ever released a "we have decided to go our separate ways" statement. That’s just not their style. However, looking at their schedules toward the end of 2022, it’s not hard to see where the friction might have come from.
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Hader was deep into the final seasons of Barry, a show he didn't just star in, but also wrote, directed, and produced. It was an all-consuming project that he’s admitted left him pretty exhausted. Meanwhile, Kendrick was moving into directing herself with Woman of the Hour.
Sometimes, two people who are "really into each other" just hit a wall where their careers take up 100% of their bandwidth.
Where Are They Now?
Fast forward to 2026, and a lot has changed.
Bill Hader moved on to a very high-profile relationship with comedian Ali Wong. That relationship has been its own rollercoaster—they were first linked in late 2022, broke up, got back together in 2023, and eventually became "awards show official." However, latest reports from early January 2026 suggest that Hader and Wong have also recently split due to their intense work schedules.
Anna Kendrick, on the other hand, has stayed largely single—or at least, she's back to being her usual private self. She’s been vocal lately about her past relationship experiences, specifically discussing how she’s learned to set much higher boundaries for how she’s treated.
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What We Can Learn From the Hader-Kendrick Era
What’s interesting about the Bill Hader and Anna Kendrick relationship isn't the drama—because there really wasn't any. It’s the fact that it proved celebrities can have normal, private lives if they really want to.
They didn't use their relationship to sell a movie. They didn't do a joint Vogue spread. They just... dated. And when it was over, they just... stopped. In the messy world of celebrity gossip, there’s something kind of refreshing about that.
If you're looking for a roadmap on how to handle a breakup with grace, you could do a lot worse than following their lead. Keep your head down, focus on your work, and don't feel the need to explain your private heart to the entire internet.
Next Steps for Fans: If you want to see the chemistry that started it all, Noelle is still streaming on Disney+. It’s worth a watch just to see the "Nick and Noelle" dynamic, knowing what we know now. Beyond that, keep an eye out for Kendrick's directorial work; she's clearly shifting her focus behind the camera, much like Hader did with Barry.