Celebrity engagements and weddings inevitably bring a whirlwind of excitement from fans, but even more so for Rita Ora, 32, and her husband Taika Waititi, 47, who chose to keep their love story very secret.
The couple tied the knot privately in Los Angeles in August 2022, and Rita was later spotted with a stunning emerald engagement ring and diamond wedding band on her left hand.
Taika admitted their wedding took place in the woodlands at their home just two weeks after Rita proposed while on vacation in Palm Springs. To mark one year of marriage, the happy couple shared their first wedding photos and engagement details with Vogue, sparking controversy among fans. “Rita [Ora] proposed to me, and I said 'yes' instantly," filmmaker Taika explained in the interview, and Instagram fans defended the modern proposal after some voiced negative opinions.
"Imagine getting upset over a woman proposing to a man," wrote one, and another added: "Why are people upset about women proposing to men? If two people love each other, why does it matter?"
A third remarked: "I think women proposing to men is badass. I don't see the problem. Good for them!" and a fourth penned: "It's great Rita proposed, way to break gender norms, that's cool, the idea the man needs to initiate everything is sexist and outdated."
How did Rita Ora and Taika Waititi meet?
© GettyRita and Taika met at a barbecue at his house in LA in 2018, the same year he divorced his first wife Chelsea Winstanley, with whom he shares children Te Hinekahu and Matewa Kiritapu.
Their relationship didn't begin until they were both filming in Australia in 2021. The following year, Rita popped the question and admitted she picked out her stunning engagement ring with her now-husband.
What is Rita Ora's engagement ring like?
© GettyThe Let You Love Me hitmaker showed off her ring for the first time on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon in February 2023. She revealed a square-shaped, emerald-cut emerald surrounded by a halo of smaller diamonds and finished with a yellow gold band.
Speaking about choosing her ring, she told Jimmy: "When you know what you want—and I felt like I really knew that I wanted to be with his person. I just wanted it to feel really right, and so I may have taken him to the shop, and I may have pointed out exactly what ring I wanted."
What wedding dress did Rita Ora wear?
Rita and Taika got married in front of "a small group of friends" in Los Angeles, telling Vogue: “It wasn’t in London or in France like everyone reported." With just a few weeks to plan the wedding, Rita didn't have much time to design her dream wedding dress, but as fate would have it, the Tom Ford one-shouldered, sheer lace gown was already in her size in town.
"Because it wasn’t planned, I didn’t know if the right dress was even going to be in town, and I just took the risk and went to the Tom Ford shop, and they had it perfectly waiting with the veil, in my size, no alterations needed to be done. I mean, it was like it was meant to be, to be honest. And it just made me so happy," she said.
© GettyPhotos show Rita changed into a ruffled dress with a plunging neckline and long sleeves for her first dance, followed by tailored trousers, a ruffled blouse and sheer underwear for the Elvis performance - both of which were also designed by Tom Ford.
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