Meet the Real-Life Loves of the “Happy’s Place” Cast
Meet the Real-Life Loves of the “Happy’s Place” Cast
Francesca Gariano, Emily KrauserFri, October 23, 2026 at 2:00 PM UTC
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From left: Rex Linn and Reba McEntire attend the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles on Sept. 14, 2025; Melissa Peterman and John Brady attend the annual Paley Honors Fall Gala at the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, Calif., on Nov. 10, 2025Credit: John Shearer/WireImage; Maya Dehlin Spach/Getty -
Season 3 of Happy’s Place premieres on Oct. 23, 2026
The NBC sitcom reunites Reba stars Reba McEntire and Melissa Peterman
In real life, McEntire has been dating her Happy’s Place costar Rex Linn since 2020
Humor and romance are at the heart of Happy’s Place — and that’s true of Reba McEntire’s real life, too.
Season 3 premieres on NBC on Oct. 23, 2026. The sitcom stars McEntire as Bobbie, a woman who inherits her late father’s Tennessee bar, Happy’s Place. After learning she has a long-lost half-sister, Isabella (Belissa Escobedo), who’s also part owner of the tavern, the pair take on the challenge of running the joint. The cast is rounded out by McEntire’s former Reba costar Melissa Peterman, her real-life fiancé Rex Linn, Pablo Castelblanco and Tokala Black Elk.
Season 2 was a roller coaster for Bobbie and Emmett (Linn), which ended (spoiler alert!) with both single by the finale. However, in reality, McEntire and Linn have been dating since 2020. Linn sweetly revealed to PEOPLE in October 2024 that sometimes he will “sneak by for a quick kiss” with McEntire while filming.
Peterman, who herself has been married since June 1999, told PEOPLE the couple is “adorably cute,” adding, “We’re taking a five-minute break, or we’re having breakfast or lunch, and you look over ... and they’re in a booth at the bar.”
Here’s everything to know about the real-life loves of the Happy’s Place cast.
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Reba McEntire and Rex Linn
Reba McEntire and Rex Linn attend the annual Paley Honors Fall Gala at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif., on Nov. 10, 2025Credit: Maya Dehlin Spach/Getty
McEntire and Linn may be a couple in real life, but on-screen, they portray Bobbie, the daughter of the late Happy, and Emmett, the bar’s cook and Happy’s longtime friend.
They first met in 1991 on the set of a Kenny Rogers movie but didn’t start dating until 2020. (McEntire was married to second husband Narvel Blackstock from 1989 to 2015.) That November, they made their red carpet debut at the CMA Awards.
The actors got engaged in December 2024. After announcing the news in September 2025 at the Emmy Awards, McEntire shared details with PEOPLE about the special moment, which happened on Christmas Eve at Leiper’s Fork in Tennessee.
McEntire’s relationship with Linn has been a game-changer for her, telling PEOPLE in October 2025 she was “happier now than I’ve ever been in my life.”
“It’s amazing. It’s wonderful being 70 and getting to do what I get to do at the level I want to do it,” she continued. “I’ve never been loved by a man like Rex Linn. Rex is a very tender-hearted man, and I just love him with all my heart. He’s a good guy. Real bashful, though.”
McEntire also reflected on their on-set dynamic playing an estranged couple on Happy’s Place, saying, “Getting to work with Rex, drive to work with Rex and do the show, the rehearsals, drive home, talk about it, rehearse together — that’s what’s really special for me. I’ve not had that before.”
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Belissa Escobedo
Belissa Escobedo attends the 2025 NBCU Emmy Luncheon at the SLS Hotel in L.A. on April 11, 2025Credit: Michael Buckner/Deadline via Getty
Escobedo portrays Isabella, Bobbie’s paternal half-sister, and she hasn’t shared much about her relationship status IRL.
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She has, however, been open about her sexuality, telling Hola! in May 2020 that she came out as pansexual to her family when she was a teenager.
Escobedo has also discussed her relationship with her on-screen sister.
“She’s such a sweetheart,” she told Teen Vogue in October 2024. “Immediately when I first met her, when we did our chemistry read, she was just so warm and welcoming. Not at all what you’d expect from such an iconic artist.”
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Melissa Peterman and John Brady
Melissa Peterman and John Brady attend the Inaugural Gateway Celebrity Fight Night in Phoenix on March 12, 2022Credit: Phillip Faraone/Getty
Reuniting on-screen with McEntire after their six-season stint on Reba, Peterman portrays Gabby, a bartender at Happy’s Place, on the NBC sitcom. In real life, she has been married to her husband, actor John Brady, since June 1999, per NBC Insider.
The couple met in Minnesota, where they still own a home, and wed in Peterman’s hometown of Minneapolis. They share one child, son Riley, born in 2005.
Peterman celebrated their “silver medal” marriage in 2024, sharing photos from their reception on Instagram alongside the caption, “In the Olympics of marriage, we’re silver medal winners!! Happy Anniversary John Brady. 25 Years!”
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Pablo Castelblanco
Pablo Castelblanco attends the annual Paley Honors Fall Gala at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif., on Nov. 10, 2025Credit: Earl Gibson III/Deadline via Getty
Castelblanco returns to Happy’s Place as Steve, the bar’s accountant who struggles with OCD and has a tight-knit bond with Gabby. The actor is openly gay and hasn’t shared much about his personal life publicly, including his relationship status.
However, he dished on the “very special relationship” and friendship between his and Peterman’s characters in February 2025.
“We push each other’s buttons the hardest, I think, both ways. I try to ground her in reality, and I think she tries to move me away from my stubbornness and the OCD stuff,” he told ScreenRant. “I don’t think she does it in a mean way, but she’s kind of like, ‘Okay, you’re ready to move forward.’ ”
He’s also said nothing but sweet things about McEntire, telling PEOPLE in February 2026 that his costar was “the best person on Earth.”
“When we got renewed [for season 3], it was around my birthday, and then we got together to celebrate the news on my birthday, and then they had presents for me, something I did not ask for, and they made me have the best time,” Castelblanco recalled. “So that’s the kind of family we’ve become. And such a cliché, everyone says that about their show, but really, God, I mean, it starts from the top. It starts from Reba being the kindest person there is.”
on People
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
