Who Is Patton Oswalt's Wife? All About Meredith Salenger
Patton Oswalt and his wife, Meredith Salenger, married in 2017
Patton Oswalt may be known for his comedy, but when it comes to his wife, Meredith Salenger, he shows some serious affection.
The actors began dating about a year after the death of Oswalt's first wife, I'll Be Gone in the Dark author Michelle McNamara, who died unexpectedly in her sleep at age 46 in 2016. Following Oswalt and Salenger's first public appearance in June 2017, they announced that they were engaged the next month.
"I have waited 47 years to find true love," she wrote afterward. "Creating our family unit while honoring the brilliant gift Michelle has given me will be my life's goal and happiness. I am deeply in love with both Patton and [his daughter] Alice and very much looking forward to a beautiful happy life having adventures together."
Oswalt and Salenger married in November 2017, and the couple have been inseparable ever since. To mark their first anniversary, the Feelin' Kinda Patton comic shared a sweet tribute to Salenger, along with a snap of the couple dancing on their wedding night.
"One year ago today I married @MeredthSalenger, who stepped into this lost widower's life, and swept him and his daughter up out of the cobwebs and into the sunlight," Oswalt wrote on X (formerly Twitter). "I will never be able to repay you, baby, but I'll never stop trying."
More recently, on Salenger's birthday in March 2024, he posted a carousel of images of his wife, and himself, along with a heartfelt message paying tribute to her.
"Happy birthday, Meredith," the comedian began his caption.
"Another spin around the sun making everyone you encounter feel 100% better about themselves, of effortlessly standing up for what’s right, of beautifully showing me a better and smarter way to be. You are classic and new and otherworldly all at the same time," he continued, noting that the third photograph in his carousel was his wife, "in the morning, no make-up, sleep mask over a big mop of bed-head, and you’re still gorgeous."
"I’m going to wake up every day thinking of how I can make YOUR day, week, month, year, and rest of your life better. Love you baby. Happy birthday," Oswalt concluded the sweet post.
So who is Patton Oswalt's wife? Here's everything to know about Meredith Salenger and her relationship with the 1% Club host.
She's an actress
Salenger has starred in notable iconic movies and TV shows: The award-winning actress' credits include Dream a Little Dream, Dawson's Creek and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
She's also done plenty of voice acting, landing roles in hits such as Cartoon Network's Star Wars: The Clone Wars, The Secret Life of Pets 2 and and 2024's Star Wars: Tales of the Empire.
In June 2024, Oswalt gave his wife a shout-out for her latest role in the movie The Prank on Instagram.
"Obviously I am BEYOND biased in this observation but I love when actors find moments to just flat-out channel reality into a performance. This is a moment from the closing credits of THE PRANK, a vicious, funny little dark comedy that came out earlier this year," he began the caption of his post, which was a clip from the closing credits of the movie.
He continued, "None of this was scripted but Meredith tapped into her real-life inner “exasperated mom” and it was so good they had to find a way to keep it. You know these moments when they happen ‘cuz they give you a great jolt — no one’s acting anymore, and we’re getting at something true. Love stuff like this. I also love this actress but that’s a whole other story."
She went to Harvard
Salenger spent her college years at Harvard, where she graduated with a degree in psychology. She later trained in family law and court-based mediation at Pepperdine University Law School before working as a mediator for several years, according to YourTango.
At Harvard, she was friends with fellow famous face Matt Damon. In 2018, she posted a throwback video on Instagram of herself and Damon before their college formal. In the clip, Salenger dances while Damon shows off his handy tricks.
"Matt Damon & I at our Harvard college formal. Doin tricks. Me - the hustle. Him - cigarette tricks," she wrote in the caption.
She and Oswalt met through actress Martha Plimpton
The two have their mutual friend Martha Plimpton to thank for their relationship. After Oswalt missed a dinner party at Plimpton's home, Salenger messaged him on Facebook.
"We have all of these mutual friends on Facebook. [After the dinner party] Meredith sent me a message saying, 'You missed some amazing lasagna last night dude,' " he recalled on Jimmy Kimmel Live! in 2017. "That was on February 28. We started talking. We didn't meet face to face until May 20."
Plimpton later officiated the couple's wedding in front of family and friends at Jim Henson Studios in Los Angeles on Nov. 4, 2017.
She and Oswalt made their red carpet debut at a movie premiere
Oswalt and Salenger made their first public appearance at the Baby Driver premiere in June 2017.
The actors held hands as they posed for photos on the red carpet and once inside the theater, Salenger posted a selfie of them on X, simply captioning it, "#BabyDriverMovie with @pattonoswalt."
At the time, a source close to the couple told PEOPLE the relationship was "new" and the two were "very happy."
Oswalt's proposal to Salenger was Star Wars-themed
Ever the joker, Oswalt popped the question in a humorous way — and it was a nod to Salenger's career, as the actress lent her voice to several animated Star Wars shows.
"I put the ring in a marzipan [Star Wars aircraft] Slave I replica and said, 'Will you be my Padawan of Love?' " he posted on X. "She maced me but said yes later."
Gushing over the proposal, Salenger wrote in an Instagram post: "It's official. I'm the luckiest happiest girl in the universe!!!! I love you @pattonoswalt I love you Alice Oswalt! #YesYesYes."
She's a stepmom to Oswalt's daughter
Salenger took on the role of stepmom to Oswalt and McNamara's daughter, Alice Rigney Oswalt.
While there was an initial adjustment period, their special bond has blossomed with time. Salenger even joined Alice's virtual class in 2020 after the students watched her 1985 breakout film The Journey of Natty Gann.
On Mother's Day 2022, Salenger showed her love for her stepdaughter in an Instagram post.
"My whole heart. My beautiful loving hilarious mischievous snuggly kind thoughtful hardworking studious witty playful brave adventurous soulful wise strong amazing Alice," she wrote. "Being your mom is the greatest because you are truly a gift from heaven to me. I am grateful every day to have you as my daughter. I love you endlessly. Forever. 💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖 #MothersDay."
In December 2023, the actress shared an adorable Reel on the social media platform that featured a compilation of images of Alice, herself and Oswalt. Although there was no caption on the post, the video was soundtracked with the track "Twinkling Lights (Reimagined)" by Auni.
More recently, Oswalt posted a sweet tribute to his wife on Mother's Day in 2024, writing,: "She stepped in. She stepped in and stepped up and elevated us higher than we could have ever imagined. Happy Mother’s Day, @meredithsalenger. I’m forever in awe, debt, and love," alongside an image of Alice and Salinger walking hand in hand.
In the comment section, the actress shared her own thoughts on being a step mom. "You gave me the greatest gift in my life. Michelle made her the cutest thing on the planet. And handed me the torch to help raise her to be the incredible woman that she is. I am beyond grateful for all of it.💖," she wrote.
She and Oswalt hosted a podcast together
In 2021, the Night in the Life of Jimmy Reardon star began hosting a weekly podcast with her husband. The audio show ran for over a year before they concluded it in August 2022.
Did You Get My Text? was based on the texts that the couple send each other — despite living in the same house. They discussed everything from parenthood and pop culture to philosophy and snack foods.
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