Candace King’s husband is Steven Krueger, an actor she married on February 28, 2026, in an intimate ceremony at a small Tennessee chapel, just weeks before the couple expected their first child together. The wedding, described by King as feeling like “a love song,” marked a new chapter for the actress best known as Caroline Forbes on The Vampire Diaries. It also closed a journey that began with heartbreak: her 2022 divorce from Joe King, the guitarist from The Fray.
Who Is Steven Krueger? Candace King’s Current Husband
Steven Krueger is an American actor best known for playing Josh Rosza, a vampire bartender, across multiple seasons of The Originals — the Vampire Diaries spin-off that ran from 2013 to 2018. He has since appeared in Yellowjackets, the buzzy Showtime survival thriller, as Coach Ben Scott. Candice King’s daughters walked with her down the aisle at the small Tennessee wedding, the couple confirming their union publicly via People magazine.
Krueger was born in the early 1990s and grew up in California before moving to New York to study acting. He landed his Originals role in 2013, shortly after the show premiered, and remained a recurring presence through the series finale. Outside of horror and supernatural drama, he has done guest appearances on procedural network shows and continued pursuing film work on independent projects.
| Detail | Steven Krueger | Joe King (ex-husband) |
|---|---|---|
| Profession | Actor (The Originals, Yellowjackets) | Musician, guitarist (The Fray) |
| Connection to Candice | Co-star in TVD universe (The Originals) | Met through Nina Dobrev at Super Bowl, 2012 |
| Married Candice | February 28, 2026 | October 18, 2014 |
| Marriage Status | Current (married 2026) | Divorced (filed May 2022) |
| Children with Candice | 1 (expected 2026) | 2 daughters: Florence (2016), Josephine (2020) |
What strikes people who follow both actors is how quietly their relationship developed. Krueger, by his own admission in a 2023 interview with 26 Magazine, had been thinking about family for some time. “A family is definitely in my future,” he said — months before he and King had gone public. Fate, it turns out, had been arranging things while they weren’t watching.
How Candice King and Steven Krueger Met
The two actors first appeared in the same universe when King joined The Vampire Diaries in 2009 and Krueger entered The Originals in 2013, but their actual friendship developed slowly over years of fan conventions and cast reunions. By April 2023, Krueger shared a group photo that included King, describing their extended group of former co-stars as people who “still jump at the opportunity to catch up any chance we get.”
That casual closeness shifted sometime in mid-2023. In November 2023, King let her audience in on a secret during an episode of her podcast “Superbloom.” She wasn’t ready to say a name, but she made clear something had changed. “I’ve been dating,” she said on air. “Not multiple people, only one. This is not brand new. It is good. There’s a smile on my face and joy in my heart.” By December 2023, a year-end Instagram recap she posted included a clip of her and Krueger sharing a kiss. No caption needed.
Their first known public appearance as a couple outside of social media came in early 2024, when King documented, on Instagram Story, with gleeful energy, her attempt to spot Krueger in the background of Emmys red carpet footage, zooming in on him outside the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles.
Candice King and Steven Krueger: Relationship Timeline
“Steven Krueger (Ben) got married to Candice King!”, fans on r/Yellowjackets reacted with excitement when the news broke. The community, known for following the Yellowjackets cast closely, was thrilled to see Krueger’s real-life story take such a happy turn.
— r/Yellowjackets, April 4, 2026 (966 upvotes)
Candace King’s husband Steven Krueger entered her life gradually between 2023 and 2026, with the relationship moving from quiet Instagram confirmation through a Paris trip, a mountain getaway, and finally a Tennessee chapel. Here is the complete timeline:
- April 2023: Krueger and King appear together in fan convention group photos. Their extended cast group is close but romantic connection not yet visible.
- November 2023: King reveals on “Superbloom” podcast she’s been quietly dating someone, and that she’s happy.
- December 2023: King’s year-end Instagram post includes a brief kiss clip with Krueger. Romance confirmed without a formal announcement.
- February 2024: The couple travels to Paris together, their first known trip abroad as a couple.
- April 2024: King posts photos from a mountain adventure trip, Krueger by her side, with a caption about bears and turkeys in the bushes.
- June 2024: King begins filming season 1 of We Were Liars for Prime Video; Krueger visits her on location with her daughters.
- October 2024: They dress as Taylor Swift and Post Malone for Halloween, posting a video set to “Fortnight.”
- December 2024: Family trip to Florida; Krueger joins King and her daughters. Their Instagram posts show an easy, comfortable family dynamic.
- May 2025: On her 38th birthday, King announces the engagement on Instagram. “A couple of weeks ago @stevenakrueger gave me the best gift of all when he asked me to marry him,” she wrote. “The privilege of getting older is much sweeter knowing I get to share it with you Steven.”
- December 2025: King announces her pregnancy, expecting her first baby with Krueger, her third child overall.
- February 28, 2026: They marry at a small Tennessee chapel.
The speed from “confirmed couple” to “parents-to-be” to “married” is striking, less than three years from that first Instagram kiss clip to the chapel. For King, who spent years building a new life after her first marriage, the pace speaks to something.
Candace King and Steven Krueger’s Wedding
Candice King and Steven Krueger tied the knot on February 28, 2026, in a private ceremony at a small Tennessee chapel, with King’s two daughters by her side. The ceremony was intimate, 16 guests, according to reports, and deliberately quiet in a way that felt personal rather than planned. A friend of a friend played guitar live. The flowers turned the tiny chapel into what King described, in a later interview with Vogue, as “a fairytale greenhouse.”
“Candice King and Steven Krueger’s Wedding at a Tiny Tennessee Chapel”, r/Fauxmoi described the venue simply, and fans in the thread agreed it matched the couple’s understated approach to their whole relationship.
— r/Fauxmoi, April 4, 2026 (822 upvotes)
King’s own words to Vogue captured the ceremony best: “Walking down the little aisle, I remember hearing the soft sounds of live guitar being played by a friend of a friend that we’d never met, the flowers making this tiny wooden chapel feel like a fairytale greenhouse, and the warm glow of light on Steven’s face. We’d already done a first look at our house, but walking down the aisle in that warm glow of the magic hour felt like our own little secret. Like the rest of the world kept turning in chaos, and we had this small little nook of the world to ourselves. Time slowed down and felt like a love song.”
Both daughters from King’s first marriage were present. The couple announced the news publicly through People magazine shortly after. A baby is on the way.
Candice King’s First Marriage to Joe King
Before Steven Krueger, Candice King was married to Joe King, the guitarist and co-founder of The Fray, the Denver rock band behind “How to Save a Life.” Their story started at a Super Bowl party in February 2012, where King’s Vampire Diaries co-star Nina Dobrev made the introduction — a detail Candice King’s Wikipedia biography confirms. They were engaged by May 2013 and married on October 18, 2014, in New Orleans, Louisiana.
The marriage produced two daughters: Florence, born in January 2016, and Josephine, born in December 2020. King also became stepmother to Joe’s two daughters from a previous relationship. By most accounts, the years between their wedding and the pandemic were full ones, a growing family, two working parents in creative industries, a life split between coasts.
In May 2022, King filed for divorce. Us Weekly broke the news. No public statement about the reasons was made by either party. King retained the surname “King.” What followed was a period of rebuilding, which she documented on her podcast with characteristic openness, talking about what it means to start over at 35, to date again, to find your footing.
| Marriage | Joe King | Steven Krueger |
|---|---|---|
| Met | February 2012 (Super Bowl, via Nina Dobrev) | Through TVD universe, reconnected 2023 |
| Engaged | May 2013 | May 2025 |
| Married | October 18, 2014, New Orleans | February 28, 2026, Tennessee |
| Duration | ~8 years (2014–2022) | Ongoing |
| Children | Florence (2016), Josephine (2020) | First child expected 2026 |
| Status | Divorced (filed May 2022) | Married |
Joe King is a founding member of The Fray, the band formed in Denver in 2002 that peaked commercially in the late 2000s and early 2010s. He and co-founder Isaac Slade have kept the band active over the years with tours and new material. He and Candice have maintained a co-parenting relationship focused on their daughters.
Family and Children
Candice King has two daughters from her marriage to Joe King: Florence, born in January 2016, and Josephine, born in December 2020. Both girls are growing up with parents who have maintained a cooperative co-parenting relationship despite the divorce. Florence and Josephine were present at their mother’s February 2026 wedding to Krueger.
King announced in December 2025 that she is expecting her third child, her first with Krueger. The pregnancy news came months after the engagement, with the baby expected sometime in 2026. At 38, King has spoken openly about how her perspective on family has shifted. What she once built with one person, she’s now building again, differently, with more clarity about what she values.
Krueger, for his part, had signaled early that fatherhood was on his radar. His April 2023 interview quote about “a family definitely in my future” was made before the couple went public, one of those small things that reads differently in retrospect.
Frequently Asked Questions About Candice King’s Husband
Who is Candice King’s husband?
Candice King’s husband is Steven Krueger, an American actor best known for playing Josh Rosza in The Originals and Coach Ben Scott in Yellowjackets. The couple married on February 28, 2026, in a small Tennessee chapel ceremony.
When did Candice King marry Steven Krueger?
Candice King and Steven Krueger married on February 28, 2026, in an intimate private ceremony at a small Tennessee chapel. The wedding had approximately 16 guests, including King’s two daughters from her previous marriage.
How did Candice King and Steven Krueger meet?
Candice King and Steven Krueger met through their shared connection to The Vampire Diaries universe, she played Caroline Forbes on TVD, he played Josh Rosza on The Originals. Their friendship deepened through fan conventions and cast reunions in 2023 before evolving into a romantic relationship.
Was Candice King married before Steven Krueger?
Yes, Candice King was previously married to Joe King, guitarist of The Fray. They married on October 18, 2014, in New Orleans and have two daughters together, Florence and Josephine. King filed for divorce in May 2022. She retained the surname “King” after the divorce.
Does Candice King have children?
Candice King has two daughters with her ex-husband Joe King: Florence (born January 2016) and Josephine (born December 2020). She announced in December 2025 that she is expecting her first child with Steven Krueger, making it her third child overall.
When did Candice King and Steven Krueger get engaged?
Candice King and Steven Krueger got engaged in early May 2025, just before her 38th birthday on May 13. King announced the engagement on Instagram on her birthday, writing that Krueger “gave me the best gift of all when he asked me to marry him.”
What is Steven Krueger known for as an actor?
Steven Krueger is best known for playing Josh Rosza, a recurring vampire character on The Originals (2013–2018), and for his role as Coach Ben Scott in the Showtime series Yellowjackets. He has also appeared in several television guest roles and independent film projects.
Why did Candice King and Joe King divorce?
Candice King filed for divorce from Joe King in May 2022 after approximately eight years of marriage. Neither party made a public statement about the reasons for the split. The former couple shares two daughters and has maintained a co-parenting relationship since the divorce.
What This Chapter Looks Like
Candice King spent two years after her divorce rebuilding quietly, a podcast, honest conversations about dating again, a careful return to life on her own terms. By the time she and Steven Krueger went public, the relationship had already been going for months. The engagement came on her 38th birthday. The wedding came while she was pregnant. The chapel was tiny, the guest list short, the guitar played by someone they’d never met before that day.
That’s the version of the story she chose. It matches who she is: someone who talks about joy without performing it, who shares enough to be real without making everything public. Steven Krueger, for his part, showed up in her life the same way the best things often do, already there, just not yet seen clearly. Married now. Family growing. The rest of the world kept turning.
