Danielle Kirlin: Inside Ryan McPartlin’s Wife’s Acting Career, 23-Year Marriage, Two Sons and Their Healthy-Food Business

Danielle Kirlin is an American former actress, entrepreneur and the longtime wife of Ryan McPartlin, the actor best known as Devon “Captain Awesome” Woodcomb on Chuck. Danielle appeared in Felicity and the horror movie Centipede! before moving much of her attention toward family and business. She and Ryan met while attending the University of Illinois, married on October 26, 2002, and remain together more than two decades later.

Today, their story is about much more than Hollywood. The couple are parents to two sons, Wyatt and Dylan, and have also worked together on Plate Therapy, a healthy prepared-meal business.

Quick Bio of Danielle Kirlin

IMDb records Danielle’s birth as November 15, 1975, in Quincy, Illinois, and lists her acting credits including Felicity and Centipede!.

Who Is Danielle Kirlin?

Danielle Kirlin is one of those celebrity spouses who had an entertainment career of her own before becoming better known through marriage.

She acted professionally in the early 2000s.

Her résumé was never as large as Ryan’s later television career, but it included recognizable projects.

Then her life gradually changed direction.

Marriage came.

Children followed.

Eventually, health and food entrepreneurship became an important part of the family’s professional life.

That makes Danielle’s story more interesting than simply calling her “Ryan McPartlin’s wife.”

Danielle Kirlin Was Born in Illinois

Danielle was born on November 15, 1975, in Quincy, Illinois.

That Illinois connection would become important later.

Ryan McPartlin was also from Illinois. He was born in Chicago and grew up in Glen Ellyn, a Chicago suburb.

Their paths eventually crossed at the University of Illinois.

Long before Hollywood premieres and television success, the foundations of their relationship were connected to college life in their home state.

Danielle Met Ryan McPartlin at the University of Illinois

Established biographical information about Ryan says he met Danielle while they were both at the University of Illinois.

Ryan studied speech communication there.

He also played football for the Illinois Fighting Illini as a walk-on tight end before eventually deciding that acting was a better fit for his future.

This means Danielle knew Ryan before “Captain Awesome.”

Before Chuck.

Before the Hallmark movies.

Before red carpets.

They knew each other when their adult careers were still taking shape.

Ryan McPartlin Did Not Initially Study Acting

Ryan’s route into Hollywood was not completely straightforward.

He graduated from the University of Illinois with a degree in speech communication and had played Big Ten football.

After college, he spent time traveling in Australia and New Zealand while deciding what he wanted to do next. Eventually, he moved to Southern California and pursued acting.

That decision eventually worked.

But at the beginning, there was no guarantee.

For Danielle and Ryan, their relationship developed alongside the uncertainty that comes with building adult careers.

Danielle Also Tried Acting

Danielle pursued acting herself.

IMDb identifies her professionally as an actress and lists two particularly recognizable credits: Felicity and Centipede!.

Her filmography is small.

That is worth emphasizing because some celebrity-biography websites inflate short acting résumés into huge careers.

Danielle did work as an actress.

But she did not spend decades building a massive screen catalog.

Her later professional direction became very different.

Danielle Kirlin Appeared in Felicity

One of Danielle’s television appearances came in Felicity.

She played a flight attendant in the 2002 episode “The Graduate,” which aired on April 24, 2002.

The series starred Keri Russell and became one of the recognizable young-adult dramas of its era.

Danielle’s role was small.

Still, it gave her a credit on a well-known network television series.

Interestingly, 2002 would become an important year for another reason.

Later that same year, she married Ryan.

She Also Starred in Centipede!

Danielle had a more substantial role in the 2004 horror film Centipede!

IMDbPro’s cast information lists her as Zoe.

The movie follows a group confronting giant centipedes after entering a cave system.

It was the kind of low-budget creature feature that developed its own niche audience.

Danielle’s involvement is important when discussing her career because it demonstrates that she was not merely appearing as Ryan’s spouse at Hollywood events.

She had genuine acting credits of her own.

Danielle and Ryan Married in 2002

Danielle Kirlin and Ryan McPartlin married on October 26, 2002.

Both Danielle’s and Ryan’s IMDb biographies record that date.

Their marriage therefore began before Ryan’s biggest television breakthrough.

At that stage, Ryan was still building his acting résumé.

Danielle’s own acting work was also occurring around the same period.

They were two people figuring out careers rather than an established television star marrying someone after fame had already arrived.

Their Marriage Has Lasted More Than 23 Years

By September 2026, Danielle and Ryan had been married for nearly 24 years.

Current biographical sources still list their marriage as ongoing.

That is a significant amount of time.

Their marriage has covered career changes, two children, television success and the launch of a business.

It has also covered the ordinary stages of family life that rarely appear on red carpets.

Children grow up.

Jobs change.

Priorities move.

A relationship that lasts more than two decades has to exist through all of those changes.

Ryan Became Famous as Captain Awesome

For many viewers, Ryan McPartlin will always be Captain Awesome.

He played Devon Woodcomb on NBC’s Chuck from 2007 to 2012, appearing in 88 episodes according to IMDb.

The nickname fit the character.

Devon was handsome, athletic, successful and almost absurdly capable.

He was also married to Ellie Bartowski, the sister of the show’s main character.

The role gave Ryan much wider recognition.

Suddenly, Danielle was married to an actor with a loyal television fan base.

Chuck Arrived After Danielle and Ryan Became Parents

The timing is interesting.

Danielle and Ryan’s older son was born shortly before Chuck began.

Then their second son arrived while the series was on television.

That meant one of the busiest periods of Ryan’s career overlapped directly with the couple raising young children.

Television production can involve long days.

Episodes have deadlines.

Scenes may need repeated takes.

Actors can spend far more time on set than audiences realize.

While viewers saw Captain Awesome each week, the McPartlins were also managing ordinary family life away from the cameras.

Danielle and Ryan Have Two Sons

The couple have two children, both sons.

Their names are Wyatt Duke McPartlin and Dylan James McPartlin.

Ryan’s official Hallmark biography also confirms that he and Danielle are raising two sons, Wyatt and Dylan.

The boys have occasionally appeared in family-related social posts, but Danielle and Ryan have not built their sons into full-time celebrity personalities.

That distinction matters.

Having famous parents does not automatically mean a child has chosen a public career.

Who Is Wyatt Duke McPartlin?

Wyatt is Danielle and Ryan’s older son.

Secondary relationship databases place his birth in December 2006, although the strongest sources mainly confirm his name rather than extensively documenting his personal biography.

That is a good reason not to overstate private details about him.

What is established is that Wyatt is one of the couple’s two sons and has grown up during the period when his father became widely known through television and family-friendly movies.

Ryan has frequently described family as an important part of his life.

Who Is Dylan James McPartlin?

Dylan is Danielle and Ryan’s younger son.

Secondary sources place his birth in June 2009.

Like Wyatt, Dylan has largely been allowed to grow up outside constant entertainment coverage.

Ryan’s Hallmark biography refers to both sons when discussing his life away from acting, joking that when he is not working, he is often chasing Wyatt and Dylan.

It is a simple detail.

But it gives a clearer picture of Ryan and Danielle’s life than a glamorous premiere photograph does.

Danielle Often Accompanied Ryan to Hollywood Events

Danielle did not disappear completely from Hollywood after acting.

She has accompanied Ryan to numerous industry events.

Getty Images photographed the couple at NBC Universal’s 2010 TCA Summer Party in Beverly Hills.

That same year, they attended the NewNowNext Awards together.

Years later, Danielle joined Ryan at the 2019 premiere of L.A.’s Finest.

The photographs at the top of this article show something a biography cannot easily capture.

They show the same couple across different stages of a long marriage.

Ryan’s Career Expanded Beyond Chuck

Chuck remains Ryan’s signature television role, but his career did not stop there.

He appeared in Mad Men.

He worked on Hart of Dixie, Devious Maids, Mystery Girls, Bad Judge, Playing House and L.A.’s Finest.

His film credits include J. Edgar, The Right Kind of Wrong and Hunter Killer.

He also became familiar to viewers of television movies, including multiple romantic and holiday productions.

That later career created another audience for him.

Hallmark viewers began discovering the actor whom Chuck fans had known for years.

Danielle’s Life Moved Away From Acting

Danielle’s own acting career did not develop into the same long screen résumé.

IMDb’s profile remains centered on Felicity and Centipede!.

That does not mean she stopped working.

Instead, her public professional identity changed.

Over time, Danielle became increasingly associated with healthy food and entrepreneurship.

This eventually led to a business venture that Ryan joined too.

The transition makes sense when considering another part of Ryan’s background.

He is deeply interested in health and fitness.

Ryan Is a Certified Personal Trainer

Before and alongside acting, Ryan developed serious fitness knowledge.

His biography identifies him as a board-certified personal trainer.

That helps explain why a healthy-food business felt natural for the family.

Ryan had an athletic background.

He had played college football.

He maintained the physical condition required for many of his acting roles.

Danielle became increasingly focused on food.

Fitness and nutrition naturally meet in the middle.

That meeting eventually became Plate Therapy.

What Is Plate Therapy?

Plate Therapy is a prepared healthy-meal service associated with Danielle and Ryan.

Hallmark’s official Ryan McPartlin biography says the couple launched the venture to deliver fully prepared healthy meals directly to customers.

The idea is easy to understand.

Many people want to eat healthier.

The problem is time.

Planning meals takes time.

Shopping takes time.

Cooking takes time.

Cleaning takes time.

A prepared-meal company attempts to remove some of those obstacles while keeping nutrition at the center.

Danielle Became Central to the Business

The business represents a major shift from Danielle’s early acting work.

Instead of memorizing scripts, she was working around food, nutrition and customers.

Ryan became involved too.

His Hallmark biography jokingly describes him as Danielle’s “Chief Taste Tester” at Plate Therapy’s headquarters.

That wording is playful.

But the business itself shows how their professional lives eventually overlapped.

Earlier, both had tried acting.

Later, Danielle’s business interests created another project they could share.

Their Business Became a Family Venture

A husband-and-wife business can be challenging.

Marriage already requires communication.

Business adds money, customers, deadlines and decisions.

Now imagine adding an acting schedule and two children.

Yet Plate Therapy became one of the more interesting modern parts of Danielle and Ryan’s story.

A 2025 profile of Ryan noted that the couple continued working together on the meal-delivery venture.

That means their partnership has operated on several levels.

Husband and wife.

Parents.

And business collaborators.

Danielle and Ryan Live in Los Angeles

Ryan’s Hallmark biography says the family lives in Los Angeles, California, with their sons.

That location makes sense for Ryan’s acting career.

Los Angeles also provides a large market for health-oriented businesses.

But the couple’s roots remain connected to Illinois.

Ryan grew up outside Chicago.

Danielle was born in Quincy.

And they met through the University of Illinois.

Their adult lives moved west, but their relationship began in the Midwest.

Danielle Has Watched Ryan’s Career Reinvent Itself

Actors rarely have one continuous level of fame.

A successful show ends.

Another project begins.

Audiences change.

Streaming changes what people watch.

Danielle has been beside Ryan through several different versions of his career.

There was the early working actor.

Then Chuck and Captain Awesome.

Then guest television roles.

Then movies.

Then L.A.’s Finest.

Then family-oriented television and Hallmark projects.

That kind of career requires flexibility from the entire family, not just the actor.

Ryan Has Continued Working in Television Movies

Ryan remains active as an actor.

Hallmark’s biography highlights a long list of television and film projects and his continued presence in romantic and holiday movies.

In 2025, for example, Hallmark promoted him in Double Scoop.

For Danielle, that means the entertainment side of the family’s life continues even though she herself largely stepped away from acting.

She can attend premieres when she chooses.

But she does not need to pursue roles to remain part of the industry world surrounding her family.

Danielle Is Sometimes Called a “Former Actress”

This is probably the most accurate short description of her entertainment career.

Ryan’s biographical profile describes Danielle as a former actress.

That wording avoids two common mistakes.

It does not pretend she never acted.

And it does not suggest she currently has a large ongoing acting career.

Her verified credits are limited.

Her more recent public work is associated with business and family.

People can have more than one career in a lifetime.

Danielle appears to be a good example.

How Old Is Danielle Kirlin?

IMDb records Danielle’s birthday as November 15, 1975.

That means she turns 51 in November 2026.

Ryan was born on July 3, 1975, making the couple almost exactly the same age.

They therefore moved through similar life stages together.

College.

Early careers.

Marriage.

Parenthood.

Business.

And now more than two decades as husband and wife.

Is Danielle Kirlin Still Married to Ryan McPartlin?

Yes.

Current sources continue to list Danielle and Ryan as married. IMDb lists the marriage from October 26, 2002, to the present, and Hallmark’s current biography refers to Danielle as Ryan’s wife.

In May 2025, Ryan also publicly praised Danielle in a Mother’s Day message, calling her the best thing that had happened to him and celebrating her as a mother.

So this is not a case where an outdated biography appears to be preserving an old marital status.

Recent information supports that they remain together.

How Long Have Danielle and Ryan Been Married?

They married on October 26, 2002.

As of September 2026, they have been married for 23 years and are approaching their 24th anniversary.

That means their marriage predates Chuck by almost five years.

It also predates both of their children.

They built the family and navigated Ryan’s biggest career breakthrough after already making a long-term commitment to each other.

What Is Danielle Kirlin’s Net Worth?

Danielle’s individual net worth is not reliably documented by authoritative financial reporting.

Some websites attach exact dollar amounts to celebrity spouses.

Those figures are often difficult or impossible to verify.

Danielle has worked as an actress and entrepreneur.

Ryan has enjoyed a long acting career.

They have also operated a business together.

But none of that provides enough public information to calculate Danielle’s personal assets accurately.

A precise number would therefore be speculation.

Is Danielle Kirlin Still Acting?

There is no strong evidence that Danielle currently maintains a significant active acting career.

Her IMDb page remains centered on her earlier credits, particularly Felicity and Centipede!.

Current profiles are more likely to discuss her family and Plate Therapy.

That makes “former actress” a more useful description than presenting her as an active Hollywood performer.

Of course, careers can change again.

But a biography should describe what is documented now rather than guessing what someone may do next.

Danielle’s Story Is Not Only About Captain Awesome

Ryan’s Chuck character has such a memorable nickname that it easily dominates articles about his family.

But Danielle had a life before Chuck.

She met Ryan in college.

She pursued acting.

She appeared on television and in film.

She married Ryan before his biggest role.

She became a mother twice.

Then she moved toward entrepreneurship.

That sequence matters.

It turns Danielle from a footnote in Ryan’s biography into a person with her own changing adult story.

Their Relationship Started Before Hollywood Success

This may be the most important part of Danielle and Ryan’s story.

They met before the big television role.

Before Hallmark.

Before the red carpets shown above.

That gives their marriage a different context.

Danielle did not meet “Captain Awesome.”

She met Ryan McPartlin, an Illinois college student who had played football and was still figuring out his future.

Years later, millions of viewers would recognize him.

But Danielle had known him long before that.

Final Thoughts

Danielle Kirlin has lived several different professional chapters.

She was born in Quincy, Illinois, in 1975 and eventually met Ryan McPartlin while they were connected with the University of Illinois. Ryan later moved toward acting after graduating and leaving his college football days behind.

Danielle also pursued acting.

She appeared as a flight attendant in the 2002 Felicity episode “The Graduate” and later played Zoe in the 2004 creature feature Centipede!.

Then family life became a larger part of the story.

Danielle and Ryan married on October 26, 2002, and had two sons, Wyatt Duke and Dylan James.

Ryan’s biggest breakthrough followed when he became Devon “Captain Awesome” Woodcomb on Chuck. He would later continue working across television, film and Hallmark productions.

Danielle’s path moved in another direction.

She became closely involved in Plate Therapy, a healthy prepared-meal venture that she and Ryan developed together. Hallmark’s biography describes Ryan jokingly working alongside her as the company’s “Chief Taste Tester.”

More than 23 years after their wedding, the marriage continues.

Their story has now moved far beyond the simple actor-and-actress description that might have fitted them in the early 2000s.

They are parents.

Business partners.

And a couple who knew each other before one of them became recognizable to millions of television viewers.

Danielle may still be introduced as Ryan McPartlin’s wife.

But her own story includes acting, entrepreneurship, motherhood and a marriage that has lasted through more than two decades of change.

FAQs About Danielle Kirlin

Who is Danielle Kirlin?

Danielle Kirlin is an American former actress and entrepreneur. She is also the longtime wife of Chuck and Hallmark actor Ryan McPartlin.

When was Danielle Kirlin born?

IMDb lists her birth date as November 15, 1975, and her birthplace as Quincy, Illinois.

How old is Danielle Kirlin?

She turns 51 years old on November 15, 2026.

What movies or TV shows was Danielle Kirlin in?

Her best-documented acting credits include Felicity and Centipede!. She played a flight attendant in a 2002 episode of Felicity and Zoe in Centipede!.

Who is Danielle Kirlin’s husband?

Her husband is actor Ryan McPartlin, best known as Devon “Captain Awesome” Woodcomb on Chuck.

When did Danielle Kirlin marry Ryan McPartlin?

They married on October 26, 2002.

Are Danielle Kirlin and Ryan McPartlin still married?

Yes. Current IMDb and Hallmark information continues to identify Danielle as Ryan’s wife.

How did Danielle Kirlin meet Ryan McPartlin?

Ryan’s established biography says the couple met while attending the University of Illinois.

How many children do Danielle and Ryan have?

They have two sons, Wyatt Duke McPartlin and Dylan James McPartlin.

What does Danielle Kirlin do now?

Danielle has moved away from a prominent acting career and has been associated with Plate Therapy, the healthy prepared-meal business she developed with Ryan.

What is Plate Therapy?

Plate Therapy is a healthy-meal delivery venture offering prepared dishes to customers. Ryan’s Hallmark biography says he works alongside Danielle and jokingly calls himself the company’s Chief Taste Tester.

Is Danielle Kirlin still an actress?

Her best-known acting work is from the early 2000s, and current biographical sources describe her as a former actress.

Where do Danielle Kirlin and Ryan McPartlin live?

Hallmark’s biography says they live in the Los Angeles area with their sons.

What is Danielle Kirlin’s net worth?

Her individual net worth has not been independently verified by a reliable financial source. Exact numbers on celebrity-finance websites should therefore be treated as estimates.

What is Danielle Kirlin famous for?

She is known for her early acting work, her long marriage to Ryan McPartlin, their two sons and her later involvement in the healthy-meal business Plate Therapy.

For more detailed celebrity-family biographies, hidden life stories, and interesting profiles behind famous names, visit Topper Magazine.