Paul Giamatti is a relatable icon for going to In-N-Out Burger after winning a Golden Globe for his extremely good performance in The Holdovers (if he took the french fries home and plopped them into the toaster oven to make them more crispy, even better). Less relatable, but equally iconic, is that he’s dating the actress who played his dominatrix on Billions, Clara Wong.
The relationship was confirmed during Giamatti’s acceptance speech for Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy. “I want to say, I love my beautiful girlfriend Clara Wong. Why you bother with me, I don’t know why,” he said (this was after he noted that “surely this is the first time this award has been given to an actor who has played a man who smells like fish”).
It’s unclear how long Paul and Clara have been dating, but they’ve worked together for years. She has appeared in seven episodes of his Showtime series Billions, dating all the way back to season one in 2016.
Specifically, she played Troy, a dominatrix visited by Giamatti’s character, Chuck.
Paul Giamatti is dating Clara Wong, the actress who plays his dominatrix in Billions. A king among kings. pic.twitter.com/acuMFwLrAW
— michael kolberg (@mikeykolberg) January 8, 2024
I don’t think enough people are aware that Paul Giamatti’s girlfriend was also his character’s dominatrix on Billions
— Miles Surrey (@HKSurrey) January 8, 2024
Seeing Paul Giamatti’s hot young girlfriend just made me picture what it must’ve been like to be her and be like “hey friends! seeing this new guy, gonna bring him to drinks so you can meet him. Btw he’s Paul Giamatti.”
— AB (@AlannaBennett) January 8, 2024
Wong shared a picture of Giamatti (in a Dolphins hat) on his birthday last year.
And in 2022:
I need a poster of this:
You can watch Giamatti’s speech below.
Paul Giamatti wins the award for Best Male Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy at the 2024 #GoldenGlobes for #TheHoldovers pic.twitter.com/boRoPaXf81
— The Hollywood Reporter (@THR) January 8, 2024
(Via Just Jared)