Dave Franco and Alison Brie Write Each Other a Love Letter Every Night Apart

Dave Franco and Alison Brie have been married since 2017, and work often keeps them in different time zones. Their answer to that distance is simple and a little old-fashioned. Instead of trading a quick“good night, love you”text, they write each other a full love letter every night they’re apart, sometimes on paper, sometimes by phone. Franco said on Dax Shepard’s Armchair Expert podcast that the ritual has been part of their relationship since day one, and he credits it with keeping them focused on each other through long stretches away.

The backstory makes it even sweeter. The two met at Mardi Gras in New Orleans, and five years later Franco proposed in Big Sur wearing a Mardi Gras mask Brie had left behind from that first meeting. Brie has said she never planned to marry until she met him. They’ve also worked side by side on films including The Rental and Somebody I Used to Know, and Franco says the marriage keeps getting better with time.

Most of us aren’t navigating movie schedules, but plenty of listeners know what it’s like to have a partner on the road, on shift work, or away with the military. Franco’s habit boils down to this: take five minutes and say something that matters, in actual words, before you fall asleep. That’s something any couple can try tonight. So tell us, what’s your go-to way to stay close when you and your sweetheart are apart?