Believe it or not, the two stars first met over 30 years ago on the set of the 1991 Western drama The Gambler Returns: The Luck of the Draw. Although there was no romantic connection back then on the set of the film, the two established actors unknowingly set in motion a chain of events that would one day lead them back to each other.
Years later, in January 2020, McEntire and Linn reconnected when McEntire was a guest star on the sitcom Young Sheldon, in which Linn was a recurring character. That’s where the sparks began.
However, they quickly faced a big problem because of the COVID-19 pandemic. They couldn’t see each other in person for several months at a time, so the couple did the next best thing: They fostered their budding relationship through phone calls and texts.
The long-distance dating strategy paid off in a big way. McEntire told TODAY in 2023 that they called and texted each other every day. In fact, the former Voice Coach also said that Linn is still listed in her contacts as Rex Linn, long-distance boyfriend — and even though there’s no pandemic keeping them apart these days, she has no intentions of changing how he’s listed in her phone.
“I haven’t changed it since 2020,” the Happy’s Place star revealed.
McEntire credits the two getting to know each other in an unconventional manner as something that created “intimacy” from the get-go.
In a 2024 interview with E! News, McEntire revealed that the pandemic forcing them to be physically apart may have been the best thing for their relationship.
“We created an intimacy by texting and talking over the telephone that we wouldn’t have gotten if we’d been together all that time,” she explained. “So it was very special and a great way of finding out about each other without ever touching.”
In 2025, McEntire and Linn are still going strong. The couple had an adorable date night at Opry 100 — which included stunning performances by the Queen of Country Music herself — and frequently post adorable photos of themselves just living their lives.
