You can see why Brown prefers the quiet life in Georgia with her husband, away from the burning lights and intense scrutiny of show business. It’s not uncommon for Brown, who is finishing a veterinary technician degree, to drive out late at night, rescue a dog, bathe it at home and let it sleep in her and Bongiovi’s bed. “We had to stop at one point because there were just so many,” she says. “It was like we weren’t even sleeping because they were getting such good rest!”
Has Bongiovi ever asked her to, er, quit with all the dogs in the bed? “No! Literally never,” she says with a laugh. “He just lets me be me. That’s why I adore him.” The pair met in 2021 through a mutual friend, who knew Bongiovi through college, and Brown cold called him on a whim after he shared his number. “I thought he was so cute, but I didn’t know if he liked me or not,” she says with a giggle, lightness seeping back into her voice. They FaceTimed and texted, eventually meeting up in person a month later.
Three years later, they were walking down the aisle: first in a small, intimate affair in May 2024 and then in a gloriously romantic Tuscan wedding in September last year, officiated by Matthew Modine, who plays the part of a scientist and father-figure to Brown in Stranger Things.
Hand-knitted dress, as before
Sebastián Faena
Sebastián Faena
At the time she was 20 and Bongiovi was a year older. “I understood I was young – I know that,” she says. “I truly just can’t say it enough: when you meet that person, you know it.” There are good examples of this kismet on both sides of their families: Bongiovi’s own parents are high-school sweethearts, while Brown’s met when they were 19 and 21.
When I ask her what differentiated Bongiovi from boyfriends of the past, Brown launches misty-eyed into a Hallmark-ready ode to her husband (the words “beautiful angel” are used). “I am so different from him,” she says, really considering the point. “I don’t see the best in everyone. I’m always like, ‘What are your intentions?’ because I’ve been jaded by the industry. Now I’m able to really see…” she trails off. “I’m allowing myself to be less reserved in that world.”
