The couple has known each other for over 30 years
Country music superstar Reba McEntire and celebrated actor Rex Linn are officially engaged after five years of dating. The news was announced by E! News correspondent Zuri Hall on the Red Carpet at the 2025 Primetime Emmy Awards on Sunday (Sept 14th).
Hall referred to Linn as McEntire’s “Fiancé” in their chat, to which McEntire responded, “We’re having a blast on Happy’s Place and so glad to be here tonight.” She did not correct Hall.
Confusion among fans immediately began spreading online, as McEntire did not directly confirm whether she and Linn were engaged when speaking with E! News. Twitter was abuzz trying to figure out if Hall had made a slip of the tongue or if the pair, who star together on the NBC sitcom, were indeed set to tie the knot.
During the Emmys broadcast, The Music Universe reached out to representatives for McEntire. Her team responded with confirmation that the couple were engaged, but had not made any formal announcement. They did not say if more details would be forthcoming on this happy change in relationship status.
McEntire was present at the Emmys to sing the Golden Girls’ iconic theme song “Thank You for Being A Friend” with Little Big Town’s Karen Fairchild and Kimberly Schlapman. The trio also presented Supporting Access in a Comedy Series, which went to Hannah Einbinder for her role on the HBO comedy, Hacks. McEntire is currently spending a lot of time in LA filming NBC’s The Voice and the second season of her hit sitcom, Happy’s Place.
A romance between McEntire’s sitcom character, bar owner Bobbie, and Linn’s grouchy head chef Emmitt was teased at the end of season one. Time will tell if art will imitate life when new episodes return on November 7th, with a back-to-back airing at 8 pm ET/PT.
McEntire and Linn first met in 1991 on the set of the TV movie The Gambler Returns: The Luck of the Draw, but at the time, McEntire was married to manager Narvel Blackstock. The pair remained friendly over the years and reconnected in January 2020 when McEntire guest-starred on the CBS series, Young Sheldon, in which Linn had a recurring role. They went to dinner with friends and started texting and talking daily.
The COVID-19 pandemic began shortly after they reconnected, forcing them to build their relationship through phone calls and texts rather than in-person dates. McEntire credited this period with allowing them to form a deep emotional connection without the physical aspect. She has even kept his contact saved in her phone as “Rex Linn, long-distance boyfriend” as a reminder of how their relationship began.
The couple made their relationship public in October 2020, using adorable nicknames like “Sugar Tot” and “Tater Tot.”
This will be the third marriage for the 70-year-old McEntire and the first for the 68-year-old Linn.
Matt Bailey contributed to this article.
