Michael Weatherly is happily married to Bojana Janković, but before he met his wife of 14 years, the NCIS alum was engaged to Hollywood actress Jessica Alba from 2001 to 2003, sparking plenty of controversy on account of their 12-year age gap. Here's what we know about their past relationship...
How did Michael Weatherly and Jessica Alba meet?
The former couple met on the set of Fox's Dark Angel in January 2000, when Jessica was 18, and Michael was 30. While the NCIS star had waited to pop the question on Jessica's 20th birthday in 2001, the actress revealed that her parents weren't impressed. The couple later called it quits in 2003.
What has Jessica Alba said about Michael Weatherly?
Following their broken engagement, in 2005 Jessica told Cosmopolitan: "It just didn't work out. I was so young, 18, when I started dating him. I was a virgin. I knew I wanted to be in love with the first person I slept with because for almost everyone I knew, the first experience made them feel like [expletive]. So I wanted to be really careful that he was going to be in love with me and wasn't just going to leave me."
She added: "It's really, really, really difficult to have the same occupation as the person you're with—especially when you're both actors. Actors are pulled in so many different directions that unless you both are absolutely into it through thick and thin and completely sure about each other, it's just hard. I've decided I'll never date an actor again."
Jessica also reflected on their relationship in 2007, explaining: "I don't know [why I got engaged]. I was a virgin. He was 12 years older than me. I thought he knew better. My parents weren't happy. They're really religious. They believe God wouldn't allow the Bible to be written if it wasn't what they are supposed to believe. I'm completely different."
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Following their split, Jessica went on to marry Cash Warren in 2008. The happy couple are parents to three children – Honor, Haven and Hayes. Meanwhile, Michael married Bojana Janković in 2009, and they've since welcomed a son and daughter.