Erm, it turns out Alex Hall only met Ian Young because their parents dated each other?!
You literally couldn't make this up
Plot twist: Alex Hall and Ian Young’s romance didn’t begin in a swanky bar or with a dramatic reality TV meet-cute, it started because Alex’s mum once dated Ian’s dad.
Yes, really.
What looks like a glossy Selling The OC storyline actually has a tangled, surprisingly domestic origin story that Alex has since confirmed on Instagram.
The whole backstory kinda explains why their relationship felt both intimate and awkwardly familiar to those paying attention.
Alex and Ian go way back
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If you only know Alex Hall as the Selling The OC star coming in stylish, sharp, and always ready with a zinger, the Ian Young chapter might have felt like classic reality TV romance.
But timelines are messier than camera edits.
Alex and Ian reportedly crossed paths a few years before the season that brought them onscreen as a couple. Their off-and-on romance plays out like many reality relationships do, with private starts, public peaks, and messy endings.
The couple were photographed together during season events, moved in together briefly, and then publicly split after social-media posts and Instagram Stories added fuel to the fire.
Alex has been candid along the way. People saw her reaction posts and replies that implied things weren’t simple behind the scenes.
The narrative we watched on Netflix was only the tip of the iceberg. There were earlier phases of their relationship, a quiet rekindling, and then more public unravelling once cameras and followers were involved.
Their parents dated?!
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According to Alex’s interview with Decider and a cute IG post from the Selling The OC star, the reason Alex and Ian first met is iconic.
The whole thing came about because Alex’s mum once dated Ian’s dad, and she invited Ian to a family Christmas years ago.
She said: “I met Ian maybe four years ago. My mom had dated Ian’s dad in the past, and I had never met Ian. And my mom always said, ‘You should meet him, he’s so great.’ And I’m like, ‘I don’t care.’ And then one night we met at dinner, and very quickly there was a spark.
“We kind of did this thing, like, ‘Let’s just not take it seriously. Let’s just have fun.’ And then we very quickly realised we can’t do that. So we’re like, ‘Let’s pump the brakes!’ [After] Tyler, we came back around, and we’ve been navigating. But I think we’re in a very strong place, and I’m very, very happy.”
It’s like a rom-com pitch with a twist of soap opera, the adults meet, sparks happen (or don’t), and the kids end up in the same orbit later. Alex herself explained how their paths crossed in her post.
She wrote: “The butterfly effect is crazy because what if my mom never dated your dad and invited you to Christmas dinner three years ago.”
Alex also captioned the post: “You couldn’t write this stuff! At this point, we just need our own show.”
Unfortunately, after going as far as buying a house together, Alex and Ian didn’t quite work out as having the fairytale they might have expected.
Alex described the whole fallout as a “clusterf***,” and has since shared messages of support she’s received from fellow reality stars like Christine Quinn.
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