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Scarlett Johansson and Colin Jost’s love story had an awkward beginning.

The “Black Widow” actress, 41, revealed that she acted “weird” on her first date with her now-husband, who thought their relationship wouldn’t pan out.

“Nobody had ever asked me out before,” Johansson said while guest co-hosting Monday’s episode of “Today with Jenna & Friends.” “I was a serial monogamist and I never got the sort of traditional like, ‘Hey, would you like to have dinner sometime?’”


  Scarlett Johansson on “Today with Jenna & Friends.” TODAY with Jenna & Friends/Youtub Scarlett Johansson on “Today with Jenna & Friends.” TODAY with Jenna & Friends/Youtub

  Colin Jost and Scarlett Johansson at the 26th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards in 2020. Getty Images Colin Jost and Scarlett Johansson at the 26th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards in 2020. Getty Images

Johansson, who was a two-time divorcee at the time, gave Jost a chance in 2017, over 10 years after they first met on the set of “Saturday Night Live.”

“He actually asked me out on a date,” she recalled. “We went to an Italian restaurant in the East Village. It was a lovely date. We had dinner. Afterward, he was like, ‘I’m meeting friends, let’s go grab a drink,’ and I hadn’t dated basically ever so I was just like, ‘I have to go now.’ I need to leave.’”


  Colin Jost and Scarlett Johansson seen in New York City on Oct. 13, 2024. GC Images Colin Jost and Scarlett Johansson seen in New York City on Oct. 13, 2024. GC Images

  Scarlett Johansson and Colin Jost attend a Cannes Film Festival 2023 party. Getty Images for Air Mail/Warner Brothers Discovery Scarlett Johansson and Colin Jost attend a Cannes Film Festival 2023 party. Getty Images for Air Mail/Warner Brothers Discovery

“And I got home to relieve my babysitter and it was like 9:36 and she was like, ‘Why are you home?’” the Oscar nominee continued. “I was like, ‘I went on this date, and it was…’ I just felt so flustered.'”


  Colin Jost and Scarlett Johansson attend the “Eleanor the Great” screening at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival. Getty Images Colin Jost and Scarlett Johansson attend the “Eleanor the Great” screening at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival. Getty Images

Jost, according to Johansson, even told his future wife that he noticed her odd behavior.

“Later on he was like, ‘I totally thought that was it. You were acting so weird,’” she recalled. “I panicked. I don’t know.”

The couple met in 2006 when Johansson was hosting “SNL” and Jost worked in the writers room. They started dating in 2017, got married in October 2020, and welcomed their son Cosmo in August 2021.


  Scarlett Johansson and Colin Jost arrive at the 2025 Primetime Emmy Awards. AFP via Getty Images Scarlett Johansson and Colin Jost arrive at the 2025 Primetime Emmy Awards. AFP via Getty Images

  Colin Jost and Scarlett Johansson at the “Eleanor the Great” screening in New York City in September 2025. Gregory Pace/Shutterstock Colin Jost and Scarlett Johansson at the “Eleanor the Great” screening in New York City in September 2025. Gregory Pace/Shutterstock

Johansson was previously married to actor Ryan Reynolds from 2008 to 2011 and journalist Romain Dauriac from 2014 to 2017. She shares daughter Rose, 11, with Dauriac, 43.

Jost reflected on his first impression of Johansson in his 2020 memoir, “A Very Punchable Face.”

“She has just turned 20 and I was 23, but in terms of status and maturing she was here [holds hand above head] and I was here [holds hand one inch off ground],” he wrote. “She claims that she remembers thinking I was ‘cute,’ but I know what I looked like and that’s not the word I would have used.”

Jost further recalled that the “Marriage Story” actress had “a grace and a smile that I’ve still never seen in any other human.” 


  Scarlett Johansson and Colin Jost attend the “Asteroid City” red carpet premiere at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival. Getty Images Scarlett Johansson and Colin Jost attend the “Asteroid City” red carpet premiere at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival. Getty Images

  Scarlett Johansson and Colin Jost seen in NYC in December 2024. GC Images Scarlett Johansson and Colin Jost seen in NYC in December 2024. GC Images

In April 2023, Johansson told Gwyneth Paltrow on “The Goop Podcast” that her relationship with Jost works because they “move around the world in the same way.”

“I never realized, ‘Oh, it’s really important for me, I need to be with a compassionate person. That’s a fundamental characteristic that has to be there,'” she shared. “It worked with Colin and I because I was finally able to step back and respect myself enough to know what those were.”

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