Anika Noni Rose is officially off the market. Three months after her wedding, the Let the Right One in star broke the news that she married fellow actor and Greenleaf star Jason Dirden in an exclusive interview with Brides. The two wed in an intimate ceremony last year at the Paramour Estate in Los Angeles on Oct. 16, 2022, an event which only took eight weeks to plan. Euphoria actor Colman Domingo officiated their floral filled nuptials.
Rose first met Dirden in 2014 when they were both cast in the Broadway production of A Raisin in the Sun. “We were friends for a couple of years, actually,” Rose shared with Brides. She continued, “We both went off and did our things and were disconnected for a while and then swung back.”
Several years later, Dirden and Rose deepened their relationship, and he proposed in December 2021 while they were taking part in his family’s annual Secret Santa Zoom. For the proposal, he played a video recap of their relationship, with Norah Jones’ “Come Away With Me” playing in the background. He added a familial touch by including an intimate conversation with his father about “love, partnership, and [his] desire to propose.”
After she said yes, the couple started planning their nuptials. They selected the Paramour Estate in Los Angeles as a location because they wanted to highlight the beauty of the property’s outdoor areas while adding their own arrangement of fresh florals. “The space was so gorgeous and natural that we didn’t want to overwhelm it with flowers. We just wanted them to enhance what nature had given us,” Rose said.
Another point of focus for Rose was her wedding dress, of course. Although she didn’t have a specific vision for her gown, she knew she wanted to collaborate with Gbemi Okunlola of Alonuko Bridal, a London-based designer, on a custom look for her big day. “When we met, we talked about the story we wanted to tell with the dress,” she said. “[Our vision was] that of a rose coming into full bloom, but without being too fussy. I also didn’t want anything I could wear on a red carpet,” she said.
The groom wore a customized look as well. He reached out to Wayne Willis of Well Groomed Man to create his single-breasted salmon wool suit and silk charmeuse pleated tuxedo. He decided to go with a pair of flamingo printed socks Rose gifted him years ago for some added flair. “The pink matched well with the suit and allowed it to be business on the top and playful and fun on the bottom,” he said to Brides.
While the process to get to their big day wasn't seamless, the way things worked out was just right for the couple.
“My grandma always told me, ‘Every kick is a boost,’” Anika said. “Things are going to go wrong, but everything that went ‘wrong’ during our planning was followed by something better. You may find that your ‘plan b’ couldn’t be more perfect. We sure did.”