'Moonbase 8' Preview: Who's Natasha Lyonne? Here's 'Russian Doll' and 'OITNB' star's relationship with Fred Armisen
SNL alum Fred Armisen has been dating 'Orange Is The New Black' star Natasha Lyonne since 2014. Known to some as the power couple, the duo has an adorable story of how they met and how they ended up being each other's partners. They were rumors that they were together in 2014, but the couple is much more low key compared to other Hollywood couples. Here is a look at their relationship.
The first hint was when in August 2014, Armisen took to Instagram to share a photo of Lyonne with a caption that read, "The beautiful and brilliant Natasha Lyonne @nlyonne #portlandia." Most fans thought nothing of it since Armisen's new sketch 'Portlandia' was to come out then, and so they were under the impression Lyonne would star it. She did, in fact, star in it from 2015-2018 but by the end of that month, it was reported that the duo was a couple. The US Weekly publication reported that the duo was "very flirty" when they had attended the Variety and Women in Film Emmy Nominee Celebration that month. Elle reported this year that back then, while they were walking the red carpet, Lyonne told reporter Ross Matthews that she was sending a "sex text", telling Matthews - "This is not a G-rated text message I'm sending right now." By September 2019, Lyonne revealed to Glamour that she had met Armisen years ago, but could not remember it due to her substance abuse at the time. Her introduction to Armisen was thanks to Maya Rudolph. The duo had initially met in the year 2001, and it was reported that Lyonne had entered rehab in the year 2006.
In the Glamour cover story, Lyonne revealed, "I pulled out a copy of [Legs McNeil's oral history] Please Kill Me, autographed it, and was like, 'Welcome, kid. Fred—what a name. Happy birthday. Enjoy the book.' He still has it." Armisen, according to Elle, said that he and Maya had stopped by Lyonne's place to find her a silk robe and sunglasses, chain-smoking. By the start of 2015, it seemed like the couple was a thing. Armisen, yet again, took to Instagram to congratulate Lyonne on her win at the SAG Awards for 'Orange Is the New Black'. Their first official appearance together was in February 2015 when they attended the Independent Film Spirit Awards which Armisen co-hosted alongside Kristen Bell. They continued to show up at events together such as The Night Of Too Many Stars live telethon in March 2015 and AFI Live Achievement Award Gala for Steve Martin in June that year. A year after they were said to be together Armisen and Lyonne attend the 2015 Emmy Awards - they even posted a selfie together. Lyonne also revealed to Variety that her black Freddy Krueger-esque claw vintage dress, "needed to pair well with Fred [Armisen], my boyfriend, who was nominated. And he wanted to go as Freddy Krueger. The flashes of fringe at the bottom of the dress really felt like something that Freddy Krueger could have destroyed with his claw."
After the 2015 Emmys, the couple was public in their appearances together – they went to the Smithsonian Magazine's American Ingenuity Awards and the American Museum Of Natural History Gala in November 2015, and the New York City premiere of 'Zoolander 2' in February 2016. Prior to his relationship with Lyonne, Armisen was married to Elisabeth Moss from 2009-2011, although their union didn't seem to be a happy one. In a podcast episode with 'WTF with Marc Maron', Armisen speaks on his relationship. He even revealed to Vulture in June 2016, "Everything is a process to make your life better — everything. I’m trying to be less selfish. I want to give more than I’m used to giving.”
The couple isn't shy about supporting each other in their endeavors in the entertainment industry – in September 2016, Lyonne posted a picture to her Instagram account with her man at The Misfits concert writing, "Boyfriend of the year award, basically." They even made an adorable trip to Disneyland in April 2017 for Lyonne's birthday and shared those images with their respective Instagram accounts. They also have a tradition of dressing up in horror themes for the Emmy Awards – for example at the 70th Emmy Awards in 2018, Lyonne wore a red dress with Armisen sporting Dracula teeth. The couple has been absolutely loving in their journey so far as a couple, from hilarious Instagram pictures, attending events together, coordinating on outfits, and their habit of always showing up for each other successes.
'Moonbase 8' will premiere on November 8 at 11 pm ET/PT. Catch it on Showtime on Sundays at 11 pm ET/PT.