Steve Carell has been married to his wife, Nancy, for nearly thirty years now. They are arguably one of the most successful couples in Hollywood, being married that long. For those who are unaware, Nancy Carell, formerly known as Nancy Walls, played the role of Carol on The Office. Yep, Michael's realtor and love interest.
Walls has also had roles in Steve's films, The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Seeking a Friend for the End of the World, and Bridesmaids, which did not star Steve Carell. Steve actually met his wife long before The Office and The 40-Year-Old Virgin. In fact, he was her teacher at Second City in Chicago. The two shared a love for improv and things began from there. Let's take a walk down memory lane into the history of Steve's relationship with his wife, Nancy.
8 Nancy Walls Was Steve Carell's Student
Steve Carell was a main stage performer at Second City for a long time. He lived in Chicago for a while and taught improv classes there before he made it big in Hollywood. One of his students in these improv classes just happened to be Nancy Walls, whom he would later strike up a romantic relationship with and start a family with. Carell told The Guardian that he was immediately attracted to her. "She's beautiful, intelligent and really funny. She kind of checked all the boxes in my head, but I thought she hated me because she was very quiet around me. I thought she for sure knew that I was full of it, and I later found out that she was just as nervous as I was and trying to act cool."
7 Nancy Walls Worked At A Bar In Chicago
During an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show in 2015, Steve told Ellen that his wife, Nancy, worked at a bar across the street from the Second City theater, which Steve would frequent in order to talk to her. He had been so afraid to ask her out, that it took many, many visits before one of them asked the other one out after flirting back and forth for quite a while. Steve said they were both very timid, shy, and nervous around each other. It is always hard for fans to imagine celebrities as nervous, so Steve's admission to being shy around his future wife is very sweet.
6 When Did Steve And Nancy Carell Get Married?
Steve Carell married Nancy Walls on August 5, 1995. The two have been married ever since. According to an interview with Us Weekly, Carell said "we were back east in Massachusetts and it was over 100 degrees and humid, and the church didn't have air conditioning, and I was sweating bullets. I'll never forget it." He went on to say that "I was on the altar and I turned. She was walking down the aisle and I immediately stopped sweating. I was full of this sense of calm because I knew that person was going to be my partner and have my back, and I'd have hers. It was literally feeling empowered. It was feeling like I was more powerful because she was a part of my life."
5 Steve And Nancy Carell Both Worked On The Daily Show
Both Steve and Nancy went on to work as correspondents on The Daily Show. It's not often that a couple gets to work the same job, but these two lucked out in that department. Nancy worked on the show from December 1999 until August 2002, while Steve worked on the show from February 1999 until April 2004. As previously mentioned, the couple were already married at the time, so being able to work together was extra special. Nancy thoroughly enjoyed working alongside her husband, which inspired her to continue doing so after Steve's career took off with The Office and his popular film roles.
4 Steve And Nancy Welcomed Their First Child In 2001
Steve and Nancy welcomed their first child together, a daughter named Elisabeth Anne Carell, in May 2001. Believe it or not, she is now a college student at Northwestern University. Carell told The Guardian in 2013 that when he and Nancy had kids, "my career completely changed. I'll never forget the first audition after my daughter was born. I nailed it because I didn't care anymore. All I wanted to do was get home to my baby and it changed my perspective on my career and on the world, on who I was."
3 Steve And Nancy Welcomed Their Second Child In 2004
Nancy gave birth to her and Steve's second child, a son named John, in June 2004. Steve told The Guardian in 2013 that "having children is by far the most important and best thing that we ever did." Steve loved being a dad so much that once he landed his role on The Office, he made sure the cast and crew showed up bright and early in the morning for work every day so they could get home in time for dinner. Steve wanted to be able to have dinner with his family as often as he could. He is most definitely a family man. Steve also makes it a point to not give his children everything they want, and his parenting style seems to be a success.
2 Did Nancy Carell Appear In Steve Carell's The Office
Steve and Nancy are not strangers when it comes to working together, and obviously, they have great chemistry, so it worked out great when Nancy was cast as Michael's love interest slash real estate agent on The Office. The characters didn't end up working out on the show, but their relationship in real life has never wavered. Nancy appeared in seven total episodes of The Office, and though she found the experience "very fun," it was also extremely "nerve-wracking." This was not the only time the couple worked together in front of a camera. Nancy also had a minor role in Steve's breakout film The 40-Year-Old Virgin as a health clinic counselor. Nancy also has several acting credits that do not involve her husband, the most recent being a two-episode stint on the series Angie Tribeca as Mrs. Perry in 2016.
1 Steve Carell Says Wife Is Funnier Than Him
Steve told The Guardian in the interview discussed earlier that he believes Nancy is funnier than he is. "I definitely share [a sense of humor] with her. We find the same things funny," he said. "We worked together on The Office and we are writing a TV show together. We'll have been married for 18 years this August. People say what's the secret to a marriage? There's no secret - I think you get lucky." Fans have not seen much of Nancy Carell on the screen, but it is hard for them to imagine anyone being funner than Steve himself, espeically considering all the fun the cast had behind the scenes of The Office. Nancy has not acting since appearing in Angie Tribeca in 2016, and it does not look like she plans on returning in front of the camera. Fans will just have to take Steve's word on the matter.