The ’90s didn’t just give us dial-up internet and questionable eyebrow choices—it gave us on-screen couples who basically raised our expectations for romance (and emotional chaos). Years later, these couples still hold a special place in our hearts. But the lives of these actors have changed so much and gone in so many different directions (sometimes even circling back). Let’s take a look at what happened since then.
Ross Geller & Rachel Green (Friends)
Ross and Rachel were the blueprint for “will they/won’t they” torture. We watched them fall in love, implode, reunite, break up again, get accidentally married, un-marry-ish… and somehow still end up being each other’s person.
In real life, Jennifer Aniston never really left the spotlight—she’s been leading and executive producing The Morning Show, proving she can do sharp drama just as easily as comedy.
David Schwimmer’s been doing a mix of acting, directing, and voice work, and every time he pops up, it’s like your brain goes, “Oh wow, I missed Ross’s stressed-out energy.” And yes, the Friends reunion gave everyone that moment: Aniston and Schwimmer admitted they had crushes on each other back in the day—which immediately sent the internet into a spiral.
Jack Dawson & Rose DeWitt Bukater (Titanic, 1997)
Jack and Rose represented the pinnacle of cinematic romance: an iconic ship, a tragic love story, and a door that has sparked more arguments than politics during Christmas. Titanic wasn’t just a hit—it became a full cultural event, winning 11 Oscars and basically living rent-free in pop culture ever since.
Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet, meanwhile, have stayed close in real life—the kind of friendship that’s genuinely sweet and weirdly rare in Hollywood. They still show up for each other, and they reunited in 2024 at a screening event where DiCaprio introduced Winslet. Their friendship gets brought up constantly because it’s one of those “aw, not everything is fake” stories.
Winslet’s also kept doing big, interesting projects (including the Lee Miller biopic Lee).
Mulder & Scully (The X-Files)
Mulder and Scully weren’t your average TV romance—it was all tension, unresolved feelings, and intense eye contact under fluorescent FBI lighting. The chemistry was so powerful it basically became its own phenomenon.
Gillian Anderson has had one of those careers that just keeps leveling up. She’s done prestige TV, big streaming hits, and in 2024 she played journalist Emily Maitlis in Netflix’s Scoop.
David Duchovny has stayed busy too, bouncing between acting, writing, and projects that lean into his “smart-but-a-little-weird” vibe—including hosting a docuseries about mysterious stories and secrets.
And the best part? They still seem genuinely fond of each other, which is exactly what you want from two people who spent years pretending to be emotionally repressed soulmates.
Carrie Bradshaw & Mr. Big (Sex and the City)
Carrie and Big were messy, addictive, and somehow always pulling each other back in—like a designer shoe you know will hurt but you wear anyway. Sex and the City made Carrie and Big iconic, while And Just Like That… revived their story for a new era.
Sarah Jessica Parker has basically remained the CEO of Carrie Bradshaw energy, and she’s stayed deeply involved in the sequel series. And speaking of the sequel: And Just Like That… is set to end after season 3, with a two-part finale.
Chris Noth’s real-life story took a much darker turn. In late 2021, multiple women accused him of sexual assault; he denied the allegations and said the encounters were consensual. After the accusations, he was no longer set to film additional episodes of The Equalizer.
So while Carrie’s story kept going, Big’s future on-screen got complicated fast.
Zack Morris & Kelly Kapowski (Saved by the Bell)
Zack and Kelly were the sunshine couple of teen TV—popular, cute, and chaotic in a low-stakes way. In the original show, it felt inevitable that they’d end up together (because it’s the ’90s, and that’s the law).
In real life, Mark-Paul Gosselaar has kept a steady TV career, most recently starring on NBC’s Found. And the nostalgia came back around: the Saved by the Bell reboot on Peacock was set 26 years after Zack and Kelly’s wedding, with Zack as the Governor of California. (It was eventually canceled after two seasons, but still—the fact it existed felt like a little gift.)
Tiffani Thiessen has also stayed booked and busy, and she’s leaned into lifestyle/food projects too, including releasing a cookbook focused on making leftovers actually exciting.
Buffy Summers & Angel (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)
Buffy and Angel were the gothic fairytale couple: intense love, impossible timing, and the constant sense that happiness was never going to last for more than ten minutes. If you watched this as a teen, congratulations—you were emotionally shaped (and potentially traumatized) by it.
Sarah Michelle Gellar has had a major “wait, is this actually happening?” moment recently: a Buffy revival is in the works, with her returning in a recurring role. She’s also been popping up in new projects, including joining Dexter: Original Sin.
David Boreanaz moved from vampires to military drama and led SEAL Team right through its seventh and final season, which ran in 2024.
So yes: Angel and Buffy grew up, got careers, and somehow the Buffyverse is circling back again—because the ’90s truly never die.
Dylan McKay & Brenda Walsh (Beverly Hills 90210)
Dylan and Brenda were peak teen drama romance: brooding, magnetic, constantly on the verge of a fight—and somehow still impossible to look away from. If you watched 90210, you probably still have opinions about this relationship.
Their real-life stories are bittersweet. Luke Perry (Dylan) died in 2019 after a stroke, and tributes from his former castmates were immediate and heartfelt.
Shannen Doherty (Brenda) died in July 2024 after years of living with cancer, at age 53.
Before those losses, the cast did reunite for the meta-reboot BH90210 in 2019—and the premiere episode used archive footage of Perry and dedicated the episode to his memory.
And in that very ’90s way, their legacy is still huge: people don’t just remember Dylan and Brenda as characters—they remember how they felt watching them.
