Honestly, if you've ever watched Martin Short perform, you know he’s a whirlwind. One second he’s Jiminy Glick insulting a celebrity with a mouth full of donuts, and the next he’s Franck from Father of the Bride, fluttering his hands and speaking in a "Vat-is-dis?" accent that is, frankly, legendary. It’s that exact energy—the flamboyant, high-octane, theatrical "Marty-ness" of it all—that has led people to Google is martin short gay for about four decades now.
But here’s the thing. Screen persona and real life are rarely the same.
In the world of comedy, Short is a master of camp. He leans into the theatrical. He loves a sequin. But if you look at the actual man behind the characters, the story is much more grounded, a little bit tragic, and lately, surprisingly romantic.
The Marriage That Defined Him
For thirty years, Martin Short was one half of what many in Hollywood considered the "perfect" marriage. He met Nancy Dolman back in 1972 while they were both doing a production of Godspell in Toronto. Think about that cast for a second: it included Gilda Radner, Eugene Levy, and Victor Garber.
Short actually dated Gilda Radner first. Yeah, really. But he eventually fell for Nancy, who was Gilda's understudy. They got married in 1980 and stayed together until her death from ovarian cancer in 2010.
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Short has been incredibly open about how losing Nancy gutted him. He’s said in interviews, particularly with AARP and in his memoir I Must Say: My Life as a Humble Comedy Legend, that he still talks to her. Not in a "seeing ghosts" kind of way, but just checking in. "Hey Nan," he'll say, wondering how she’d feel about a new job or a decision involving their three kids—Katherine, Oliver, and Henry.
When a guy spends thirty years in a devoted marriage and continues to honor his late wife fifteen years after she's gone, it usually answers the "is he gay" question pretty definitively. He’s a man who was deeply, singularly in love with a woman.
Why Do People Still Ask?
So, why does the rumor persist? It’s not just the characters. Short has a specific kind of "Old Hollywood" charm. He’s witty, he’s impeccably dressed, and he has a close-knit group of male friends that the internet loves to over-analyze.
Take his relationship with Steve Martin. They are basically a platonic married couple at this point. They tour together, they roast each other, and when Nancy died, Short actually lived with Steve and his family for a year to get back on his feet. In a culture that often struggles to understand deep, emotional male friendship without adding a sexual label to it, people jump to conclusions.
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Then there’s the Franck factor. In Father of the Bride, Short played a wedding planner who was coded as gay, though it was never explicitly stated. He played it with so much joy and "heightened behavior," as he calls it, that it became the mental image many people have of him. Short himself has noted that he’s met "really effeminate people who are surprisingly sincerely straight" and vice-versa. He knows how he comes across; he just doesn't care to change it to fit a "macho" mold.
The Meryl Streep Era (2024–2026)
If you needed more proof regarding the is martin short gay query, just look at the headlines from the last year. Since 2024, the rumor mill hasn't been about Short's sexuality—it’s been about whether he’s dating the greatest actress of our time, Meryl Streep.
The two sparked rumors while filming Only Murders in the Building. They were spotted holding hands at the Season 4 premiere. They were seen looking "cozy" at the Golden Globes. By March 2025, sources close to them started telling outlets like Page Six and TMZ that they had been dating for well over a year.
It’s a "friends-to-lovers" story that has the whole industry obsessed. While they spent a long time saying they were "just very close friends" (Marty's standard line), seeing them arrive together at Saturday Night Live tapings and Broadway shows in late 2025 and early 2026 has pretty much confirmed it for the public. They aren't just friends; they’re a powerhouse couple.
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What's the Takeaway?
At 75 years old, Martin Short is having a massive cultural moment. Between the success of Only Murders and his rumored romance with Meryl, he’s more relevant than ever.
To answer the search intent directly: No, Martin Short is not gay. He was a devoted husband to his wife Nancy for three decades, a father to three children, and is currently linked to Meryl Streep.
The confusion usually stems from:
- His "campy" and flamboyant comedic style.
- The characters he played in the 80s and 90s.
- The public's inability to recognize that a man can be theatrical and straight at the same time.
Basically, Martin Short is just Martin Short. He’s a guy who treats life like a party and isn't afraid to be the most energetic person in the room.
If you're looking for more on Marty's actual life, skip the tabloids and go straight to his autobiography. It’s a surprisingly moving look at how he used comedy to deal with the early loss of his parents and brother, and how he built a life based on "Teflon" resilience.
Check out the latest episodes of Only Murders in the Building to see the chemistry with Meryl Streep for yourself—it’s pretty hard to miss.