“It all felt like a dream”: Behind the scenes of Jennifer Åkerman and Tom Payne's wedding

The love story which led to a magical proposal, which led to a movie-set worthy New York wedding in 2022, could have easily been something out of a rom com (which his handy considering the groom’s occupation). Yet in this role, British actor Tom Payne plays a romantic leading man, not the more colourful characters he is perhaps more accustomed to: FBI profiler Malcolm Bright in The Prodigal Son and good guy ninja Paul 'Jesus' Rovia in The Walking Dead.

“I kind of always knew,” says Payne of his now wife, Swedish model and musician, Jennifer Åkerman. “Things started very casually but then we also saw each other in different countries and circumstances which really helped show us who we were outside of where we met,” he says.

“I took Jennifer to an event at the British Consulate in Los Angeles a year after we met. We had had a break of a few months and during that time were in the process of getting back together. Jennifer looked so beautiful and was totally at ease in an environment that, I confess, I found a little tough. She made me smile and lit up the room, and that night I knew we could go anywhere together, and it would work. I was so happy and proud that this woman had chosen to be by my side, and I knew I couldn’t let her go again.”

The proposal that followed was a case of knew-it-was-coming but not sure when. The couple bought their rings in New York together, so it was a matter of finding the right moment, or location in this case. “The first night we met, we were out with a group of mutual friends and stopped off at a taco place on Sunset Boulevard. On the day of the proposal, I took Jennifer to the same taco spot (stopping off on the way for a six pack of beer as we had done the night we met). We ordered tacos, and I got down on one knee.”

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The couple planned on an April wedding in 2020 which was cancelled when Covid hit. They were officially married in December that year (“we wanted to end the year as husband and wife”) in a small ceremony in their living room in Los Angeles; the happy tears flowed just as they did at their larger New York wedding. “As soon as I saw our son Harrison coming down the aisle with his auntie Malin [Jennifer’s sister and actress Malin Åkerman], I lost it,” says Payne.

“To finally walk down that aisle was a bit overwhelming,” adds Åkerman. “It all felt like a dream. I wasn’t expecting to get as emotional as I did, but when your whole life is right in front of you and what you love the absolute most, it's hard to compose yourself,” she says.

As the couple had already had their ceremony with rings, they wanted to do something else in New York. Tattoo artist Elë Ramirez rode in on his motorcycle and gave the bride and groom matching tattoos at the altar. “We played paper, rock, scissors to see who would go first,” says Payne. “I won and chose Jen to go first. This was my first tattoo, and I was more than a little nervous so wanted to see how it went with Jen. To my surprise it wasn’t so bad. I can see how people get addicted to the process!”

Åkerman found her dream dress by accident after visiting “a couple of extravagant stores uptown while sipping Champagne” with her mother. “They were all beautiful, but I remember thinking I was never going to find ‘the one’,” she says. “It wasn’t until after [my mum] had left and I went out searching on my own, that I stumbled upon a dress from Pronovias at a wholesale store. Once I tried it on, I could picture myself walking down the aisle and marrying the man of my dreams – that’s when I knew. It was simple, yet interesting and elegant with a feminine and sexy fit – just what I wanted. I matched it with a pearl and dagger choker, shoes from Betsey Johnson and veil,” she says.

The groom bought his shoes first and then everything else followed. “My suede boots were from Balmain. They were the last pair in my size and as soon as I put them on it was over. The most comfortable boots I’ve worn in my life!” Payne’s suit was custom Zegna and an experience itself. “I had never had a suit made and although it was a little overwhelming, I enjoyed being able to pick out each little detail. The colour was very unique and luckily worked for both spring and fall. I had a monogrammed pocket square, custom shirt, and skinny Hugo Boss tie.”

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The setting for the wedding was The Foundry in New York, which was used as one of the locations for The Prodigal Son. The couple had visited other venues, but the versatility of The Foundry won them over. “The venue is beautiful any time of year which really worked out for us since we had to move the wedding from spring to fall,” says Åkerman. “We really wanted the guests to have an experience that was unique to our wedding; there were multiple rooms, all with their own unique style and we designed it so that the guests flowed from one space to another, and each was slowly revealed as the night went on.”

“After dinner [by New York caterer Bartleby and Sage], the dance floor was dramatically revealed to be in yet another space that had until that moment been hidden from view,” adds Payne.

Live band Boutique Jazz from Élan Artists provided the “right blend of New York style that we were looking for” says Åkerman, playing a variety of relaxed, funky tunes, including 'Not a Bad Thing' by Justin Timberlake for the couple’s first dance. They were followed by DJ Matthew Rubino from Los Angeles for a more club feel. “I had clearly stated that I didn’t want too many singalongs or allsång as we say in Swedish – he followed my instructions and was great,” says Åkerman.

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The couple chose to combine the wedding with Payne’s 40th birthday celebrations so Åkerman hired a New York barbershop quartet to sing a personalised song during dinner, “and then we all sang happy birthday for him – it was one of my favourite moments,” she says.