As Young & Restless’ Courtney Hope and General Hospital’s Chad Duell Inch Ever Closer to Their Wedding Day, We Look Back at Their Heart-Swelling Romance in Photos

Courtney Hope, Chad Duell at arrivals for 44th Annual Daytime Emmy Awards - Arrivals 1, Pasadena Civic Center, Pasadena, CA April 30, 2017. Photo By: Priscilla Grant/Everett Collection

Credit: Priscilla Grant/Courtesy of the Everett Collection

File these two under #RelationshipGoals.

What Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall, and Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie were to the movies, Courtney Hope and Chad Duell are to daytime television.

Minus the divorces, obviously.

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The Young & Restless and General Hospital leads (who play Sally and Michael, respectively) are soap royalty, a real-life power couple whose relationship has fascinated fans as much as any love story playing out on screen. They are the answer to the question “What would it be like to be in a relationship with one of my favorite stars?” and the setup for another question: “What would it be like to be in a relationship with one of my favorite stars… if I, too, was a star?”

More: General Hospital stars and their real-life loves [PHOTOS]

The response to both queries: pretty damn sweet, as far as we can tell. As Hope told People shortly after she and Duell got engaged over Valentine’s Day 2021, “I am so excited for so much about our future. Just getting to create memories forever, our future children and family, the places we’ll travel and all the laughs we’ll have makes me so thrilled to think about.

“I enjoy every day with him,” she added, “so each present moment is beyond fulfilling.”

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For his part, Duell couldn’t believe his good fortune. He was still trying to wrap his brain around the fact that he’d have “my best friend to grow old with.”

Aww. And that’s just the tip of the warm and fuzzy iceberg when it comes to the soap sweethearts. As they march ever closer to their wedding day, occasionally delivering hilarious diversions along the way via Instagram (see their pre-bachelorette party Office lip-synch in all its glory above — legit one of our Favorite Things Ever), celebrate their romance with the below photo gallery that traces their steps from first meeting to lasting love.

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Chad Duell, Courtney Hope2017 Daytime Emmy Awards Nominee Reception at The Hollywood Museum in Hollywood, California on April 26, 20174/26/17 © Jill Johnson/jpistudios.com310-657-9661

1/15

General Hospital leading man Chad Duell (Michael) and Young & Restless scene stealer Courtney Hope (Sally) first crossed paths at a 2016 premiere party for a friend’s TV show. When she ran into her pal, his General Hospital brother Bryan Craig (ex-Morgan), he introduced them. “She was actually testing for my love interest on [the show at the time],” Duell told <a href="https://soaps.sheknows.com/wp-admin/_wp_link_placeholder" target="_blank">Soap Opera Digest</a> in 2019, “so I was giving her a little bit of advice.” Spoiler alert: She didn’t get the part. But that coincidence wasn’t the strangest thing about their initial encounter. “It was a Hollywood party,” Duell noted, “and we were talking about real stuff. That’s not normal!”

Chad Duell, Courtney Hope at arrivals for Daytime Programming Peer Group Celebration, Saban Media Center at the Television Academy, North Hollywood, CA August 22, 2018. Photo By: Priscilla Grant/Everett Collection

2/15

When that fateful evening wound down — with Duell and Hope reluctantly accompanying their crew to a club — he held back. “I wanted to hang out with her,” he admitted to <a href="https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/abc/general-hospital-chad-duell-courtney-hope-dating-romance-155878" target="_blank">Soaps in Depth</a> in 2018, “but part of me knew I would end up dating her. I guess I was scared.” Eventually, of course, he got over his trepidation, and before either of them knew what hit ’em, they realized that whoa…

Courtney Hope, Chad Duell"The Bold and the Beautiful" Set Location in Monte CarloMonte Carlo, Monaco06/20/17© Nick Sined/jpistudios.com310-657-9661

3/15

When Duell and Hope connected, they did so in a big way; their chatter was anything but idle. From the start, “he was someone I could talk to and just talk and talk and talk about everything from family to work to spirituality,” she told <a href="https://www.soapoperadigest.com/content/icymi-chad-duell-and-courtney-hope-interview/" target="_blank">Digest</a>, “I felt like, ‘This is definitely a genuine human being, and I could see it going far.’”

Chad Duell, Courtney Hope, at the General Hospital Fan Club Weekend Main Cast Lunch at Embassy Suites by Hilton Hotel in Glendale, Ca on July 28, 2018© Jill Johnson/jpistudios.com310-657-9661

Coutney Hope, Chad Duell, Kelly Kruger57th Monte-Carlo Television Festival PhotoMonte-Carlo, Monaco, 18/06/2017© Nick Sined/jpistudios.com310-657-9661

Courtney Hope, Chad Duell"The Bold and the Beautiful" 32nd Anniversary PartyGranvilleWest Hollywood, Ca.02/19/19© Tammie/jpistudios.com310-657-9661

6/15

As easily as Duell as Hope communicate with one another, perhaps it won’t come as a surprise that they are also exceedingly good for one another. Though his General Hospital dad Maurice Benard (Sonny) noted during an episode of his vlog, Duell can be a bit closed-off, “he has opened up more and more since we’ve dated,” observed Hope, adding that “I get very stressed out sometimes,” and he’s so chill that “<a href="https://soaps.sheknows.com/the-young-and-the-restless/news/600055/young-restless-courtney-hope-anorexia-chad-duell-relationship/" target="_blank">we’re a good balance</a>.”

Chad Duell, Courtney Hope attends The Bay: The Series Christmas Party Hosted by Gregori J Martin at a Private Residence in North Hollywood, Ca. on December 12, 201712/12/17 © Jill Johnson/jpistudios.com310-657-9661

7/15

On Valentine’s Day 2021, the sweethearts shared that they’d made their relationship official — well, even more official — and gotten engaged. “In the morning, Chad gave me a dozen roses and a big teddy bear, and told me he was taking me on a picnic for lunch and giving me a present there,” she told <a href="https://people.com/tv/young-and-the-restless-star-courtney-hope-and-general-hospital-actor-chad-duell-are-engaged/" target="_blank">People</a>. “When we got to Malibu… he read me the most beautiful poem, because I love poetry, and I started choking up.” But the best was yet to come. “He then told me to close my eyes and turn the other way, ’cause he had to ‘set something up,’” she went on. “He comically fumbled behind me to distract me from what he was really doing — and when I turned around, he was on his knee!”

Courtney Hope, Chad Duell The 44th Annual Daytime Creative Arts Emmy Awards ArrivalsThe Pasadena Civic AuditoriumPasadena, CA4/28/17 © Jill Johnson/jpistudios.com310-657-9661

8/15

The day after Duell slipped an engagement ring on Hope’s finger, she took to social media and understated, “Yesterday was a good day.” The actress, who by then had crossed over Sally from The Bold and the Beautiful to The Young and the Restless, added, “Forever with this man is a dream come true.” For his part, her future husband called himself “<a href="https://soaps.sheknows.com/the-young-and-the-restless/news/592183/general-hospital-young-restless-chad-duell-courtney-hope-engaged/" target="_blank">one lucky dude</a>.”

Chad Duell, Courtney Hope arrives at the 46th annual Daytime Creative Arts Emmy Awards at Pasadena Civic Center on May 03, 2019 in Pasadena, California© Jill Johnson/jpistudios.com310-657-9661

9/15

Perhaps the real secret to the success of Duell and Hope’s relationship is that they don’t just love one another, they also like one another. “He’s definitely my best friend,” Hope told <a href="https://www.soapoperadigest.com/content/icymi-chad-duell-and-courtney-hope-interview/" target="_blank">Digest</a>. “What withstands everything no matter what comes our way is that I have a friend that can support and be there for me and that I can also enjoy the journey with. Plus, he’s cute!”

Courtney Hope, Chad Duell Courtney Hope & Chad Duell Romantic Vacation in ParisParis, France 06/23/17© Denis Guignrbourg/jpistudios.com310-657-9661

10/15

As each day brought the couple one step closer to their “I dos,” they savored every moment. Heck, Duell told <a href="https://people.com/tv/young-and-the-restless-star-courtney-hope-and-general-hospital-actor-chad-duell-are-engaged/" target="_blank">People</a> that it was just plain “fun to say fiancée… It’s a whole new step.” Soon enough, he knew that he would “get to call her my wife! I’m excited for a lot: our future kids, new adventures, a new home and having my best friend to grow old with.”

11/15

On October 23, 2021, Duell and Hope tied the knot in what the bride called “the perfect gothic night.” (Maybe you “red” about it — and marveled at the <a href="https://soaps.sheknows.com/the-young-and-the-restless/news/613153/young-restless-courtney-hope-chad-duell-steampunk-wedding-pictures/" target="_blank">gorgeous photos from the steampunk-inspired nuptials</a>.) In her outfit by Adolfo Sanchez of Netflix’s Next in Fashion, she exclaimed, “I felt like a damn queen!” And looked like one, too.

12/15

Eight weeks after tying the knot, the news broke that Duell and Hope had split up. “We <a href="https://soaps.sheknows.com/general-hospital/news/621806/chad-duell-discusses-breakup-with-courtney-hope-general-hospital-young-restless/">didn’t actually sign anything</a>,” he told TV dad Maurice Benard (Sonny) during a January 2022 edition of his State of Mind vlog. “We weren’t really, like, you know, married or anything.” What happened? “Out of respect to her, I’m not going to delve too much into all this stuff,” Duell said. “It’s a complicated situation, and it’s not what anybody thinks.”

HOLLYWOOD, CA - OCTOBER 23: Actor Chad Duell attends the Cast Premiere Screening Of Lany Entertainment's "The Bay" Season 3 at TCL Chinese Theatre on October 23, 2017 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Greg Doherty/Getty Images)

13/15

Eleven months after the wedding, Duell returned to Benard’s vlog and opened up about the journey on which he’d gone since the breakup. “<a href="https://soaps.sheknows.com/general-hospital/news/646782/general-hospital-chad-duell-single-after-breakup-courtney-hope/" target="_blank">It hurts</a>, and it’s hard to just sit with yourself and choose to be single,” he said. “It’s a decision. It’s hard to do, man, because everyone likes to have somebody to love.” But the Emmy winner was wisely using the time to become the best man he can possibly be.

Courtney Hope sally "The Young and the Restless" Set CBS television CityLos Angeles09/10/21© Howard Wise/jpistudios.com310-657-9661

15/15

In that same post, Hope opened up a bit about “how I’ve spent the last year scraping myself off of the floor time and time again and then walking out in the world trying to seem ‘OK.'” In other words, “I’ve lived the life of a Phoenix this last year, and it was far less majestic that I had previously believed it to be.” But as painful and infuriating as it could be, it was also “cathartic,” she said. Now “my relationship with my self is stronger than it’s ever been, and for the first time in my life, I know that I fully, unshakably, have my own back.”

Eileen Davidson, Beth Maitland"The Young and the Restless" Set CBS television CityLos Angeles02/12/20© Howard Wise/jpistudios.com310-657-9661Episode # 11899U.S. Airdate 03/23/20

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