Did you know that Renee Zellweger has had a boyfriend for the past few months? Unlike her relationship with Bradley Cooper, Renee and her new dude Doyle Bramhall II seem to be okay with the occasion pap-ing. To be fair to them, it doesn’t feel like they’re calling the paps and telling the photographers where to be. But maybe that’s naïve of me? Maybe Renee wants everyone to know that she has a boyfriend when everyone is paying attention to her ex Bradley Cooper and his Oscar campaign.
Anyway, these are some pics of Renee and Doyle on Sunday in LA, coming out of a yoga class. Would you like their backstory? According to sources, Doyle and RZ went to college together at the University of Texas (Austin), and they’ve been friends for more than two decades. She’s 42 – he’s 44. A source claimed that “they didn’t date” in college, but they kept running into each other over the years, and they completely reconnected late last summer. Doyle is described as a “guitarist/producer” which…? Okay. Doyle also dated Sheryl Crow at some point. A source tells Us Weekly, “Renee’s really happy and has a new life.”
I think he’s cute in a normal-guy way. He’s the kind of guy that I would notice in the gym and obsess about for an hour and then I would probably forget him as soon as my workout was done. I think the dude head-band might be a dealbreaker, but I’m sure I’ll get some headband-defenders in here, yelling at me about how their boyfriends/husbands totally wear knit sweat-headbands and it’s super-sexy, right? But I will say this – Renee looks happy, doesn’t she? I could totally see her settling down with a “normal” guy.
Photos courtesy of Fame/Flynet.
Nice headband, sir.
Too f-ing funny 🙂
You made my morning Sarah – thank you!!!
HOOT! say do you think she has tweaked her face? She looks different to me.
Funny I was thinking the opposite, she looks less tweaked to me than she has in a long time. More like her original self.
Lumpy-stinky hobo love.
I knew she was seeing this guy but I didn’t know she had known him from the past. I hope she’s happy, she deserves to be.
+1
Agreed
Renee is 43 she will turn 44 april 25, get your facts straight;)
Thank you! She and I are like 2 days apart in age! For a second I thought I told someone I was older than I was: BLASPHEMY!
If you are Texan, you know who he is. He’s a hell of a musician and his father is a legend.
Exactly.
I was just about to say that. I went to UT Austin in the 90’s (feel…so…old…) when he was part of the Arc Angels and they were a huge deal in Austin! Great musician
The Arc Angels with Charlie Sexton? I’m really aging myself but Charlie had a huge teen girl following in LA in the 80s. Even though his music didn’t match the local scene (hair metal) he was hot.
I went to see a friend of a friend play in LA 2 years ago and Charlie was in the audience. I had to explain who he was to my friend after she looked over and said “OMG, look at that guy over there, he’s hot!” And I was like “OMG! Charlie Sexton is still hot!”
I loved the Arc Angels! That man’s daddy is a legend. I’m gonna go play their CD right now.
Exactly He is one of the best guitar players on the planet. He played for Roger Waters shortly after he got out of rehab, and it was one of the most amazing live concerts I have ever seen. All you other Texas CB’ers: check out Carolyn Wonderland! She lives in Austin now but came from Houston. INCREDIBLE talent~
Exactly. He is a badass. Saw him play all David Gilmore’s parts with Roger Waters doing Pink Floyd-revisited concert. He is so hot, too.
Amen, Amen, Amen!
You don’t necessarily have to be a Texan to know and love DB II. Been a fan for years, and while he’s not Joe Perry famous, he’s not just a “normal” guy. 🙂 HELL of a musician, love his solo stuff AND his Arc Angels stuff. For all y’all who DON’T know DB II, you oughta. 🙂
Wikipedia that sh*t people!
I never thought that Renee would settle down with a vapid Hollywood hunk. She seems like an intelligent and educated woman who wants a guy who is more into his “art” or intellectual conversation more than his looks. This match appears genuine and she looks happy. For some reason when I saw these pictures I just thought that this would have been Renee’s type if she hadn’t become a famous actress. This is the kind of guy she’d be settled with in Austin if she had chosen an alternative life as a yoga instructor or an acting professor.
Yep, I completely agree with you. Renee comes across as a very intelligent woman, which is one of the reasons why I’ve always loved her. I wish her nothing but the best – hopefully she has found a lasting love this time!
Agree as well 😉 I also like the idea of two people who have known each other for a long time, but were not romantically involved, reconnecting and becoming romantically involved. Did that make sense? LOL
Ha! My BF wears a headband when working out too, never knit though. I guess I never thought about it. Actually, he likes cutting the sleeves off of old t-shirts and using the sleeves as headbands. Lol
he’s not laughing at all.she looks happy.he looks ashamed.
To be fair it seems they’ve worked out,some people after workout look happy, and fresh, and some other look pissed and think only about eating something, or sleeping… me for example 😀
I turn into such a cave woman after working out. It’s like my brain goes into tunnel-vision mode, all that’s on my mind is water, shower, food and sofa.
I don’t recommend trying to coax a coherent sentence out of me after working out 🙂
I make Tommy Lee Jones seem friendly after a workout.
Maybe he doesn’t like a camera clicking away at him while he is going about his business.
That’s kind of nice. She doesn’t seem so into the Hollywood scene, a lower key guy is probably a good fit for her.
Head band bad.
Well yeah, boo headband. But super-sweet!
Is it just me or does he kinda look like Steve-O??
I don’t know why this pleases me, I have no feelings about RZ either way, but it does. I guess I’m just a sucker for non contractual love.
I wasn’t sure why I smiled reading this post, so thanks for explaining it to me. I feel the same way!
Ditto!
Yes! It’s refreshingly low key and normal seeming, unlike some of her fauxmance-ish matchups. Although I’m afraid I see one red flag, him dating Sheryl Crow. He likes celebs, wants to be one?
Musicians are totally her type, I think, though. Hopefully this is genuine.
Well Sheryl Crow is a musician and he is a musician- and Sheryl lived in Texas and so does he. I think it probably ha more to do with their being from the same circles than her being famous. An
My reaction was “so this is why Renee gained weight”. I mean that in a good way.
The Sheryl Crow thing is a red flag for me because my mom once worked for Sheryl Crow…. BEYOTCH!
Details please!
She looks like Melissa Gilbert in these pictures…
Thank you! Yes! I couldn’t remember her name – I thought to myself when I saw these pics: are we sure it’s Renee and not “Little House” actress?
Good call she does totally look like Melissa Gilbert and dude looks like a cross between Gavin Rossdale and Benicio Del toro.
And thank u all- it’s late & my contacts are out but I was thinking 1/2 pint when looking at these photos
What’s normal? He’s a musician, and for all we know he could be a player in his own life. I hope he’s a great guy, because she seems to live her life with a lot of integrity and has put out some great quality work. She’s in her forties and deserves a long-lasting love, which is the only thing she’s been unlucky in.
When I tore my eyes away from the dude-band I noticed that she seems to have had a lot of work done. Her face looks…tight. Like it would hurt to smile any bigger. But yeah I don’t mind her – she deserves a good guy, as long as he’s not a fame whore or as douchey as most guys in dude-bands.
YES! Thank you, I knew there was something “fresh” about her face and not natural.
I thought the same thing. I don’t think she’s been under the knife but she is definitely overdoing it with the botox.
He only gets a pass from me because it’s clear they’ve just come from working out. Headbands like that are only okay if you’re working out or performing on stage to keep your hair off your face (and not creating a sweaty hair curtain)
Now anywhere else? No.
I know plenty of hippy dudes who wear headbands to yoga and I always find it an endearingly dorky thing to do.
Why does Renee always look like she’s crying? Something about her face. But I”m glad she’s found someone.
Bad plastic surgery possibly cheek implants if you notice in Jerry Maguire she definitely did not have the sour lemon look.
Actually she did in certain scenes. Now due to the botox it’s a permanent expression.
Good for her!!
“He’s the kind of guy that I would notice in the gym and obsess about for an hour…”
Thank god I’m not the only one that does this!
Long term friendship is the best foundation. Similar ages is good, too. I hope this works out for her.
Argh…this dude head-band thing! Today at the supermarcket I saw at least 3 guys using one and I tought “please don’t let this be a new trend”…and now it’s here also. At least he was coming from sports, what makes a lot more sense then simply using it as a fashion statment…
what is goning on with her face..i think she knows she has a weird little thing on and she´s covering with hair
What’s going on with her career these days? I feel like she used to be an Acadet darling and now she’s just fallen off the face of the planet.
LOL, they both look like they got done sweating their balls off in a work out, I would hate for my picture to be taken at that moment. That said, she looks as happy as she can since she can’t move her face, and that’s great.
They really look happy together. Hope this is the one for her.
He had her at “Headband.” 😉
Seriously, his headband is cheesy but I’m gonna defend it. When I work out, I HATE it when hair is touching any part of my face. I would never work out without a ponytail, and I always have headbands or bobby pins or barrettes available to get the bangs outta my face.
Ok, I just googled him, and as a Prince fan, I *thought* his name was familiar! Bear with me here…Doyle’s ex-wife is Susannah Melvoin (twin sister of Wendy Melvoin of Wendy and Lisa, formerly part of the Revolution which was Prince’s backing band). Prince and Susannah were engaged at one point, and Prince wrote “Nothing Compares 2 U” and “The Beautiful Ones” about her.
According to Susannah’s wiki page, she and Doyle married in 1997 and had a daughter in 2001, but as of recently are separated. (I’m going to assume that they’re legally divorced now, since he also dated Sheryl Crow before dating Renee.)
So, Renee could be a stepmom someday!
did reneee get some new funbags?
how wonderful! A fantasy relationship, knowing the guy for years, being friends, and then, all of a sudden you fall in love.
He’s looks hot to me. Maybe Renee can give him some style. She certainly does NOT seem the type to care about what someone wears. Oh, I hope it’s love. ♡
I’m happy for her. I believe the blinds about her having some depression and mental issues because she completely fell off the radar. Hope she’s putting her health first and it’s probably good she’s dating a long time friend and someone not in the Hollywood grind.
I’d say these two have more posibilites of a lasting relationship than any other celebrity guy she may meet. She hasn’t been lucky so far, I hope this the one.
They look good together. Both are pretty darn fit and this guy has some nice legs. His headband has a practical purpose. Why shouldn’t a man wear somethimg to keep his hair out of his face? Hell! If he wanted to wear it for grins and giggles good for him. Good luck to them.
She looks happy, good for her! I hope this one works out.
She looks like JLaw in some of these pictures.
I like Renee, she seems as nice and normal as one can be for a celeb brainwashed into being a size 0 – but I’ve never thought she was particularly beautiful.
This is why I don’t get why everyone thinks J-Law is beautiful. SHE LOOKS JUST LIKE RENEE!
Good for her; but her personality seems a little flat.
Happy for her, she looks great and not into the hollywierd life!
He dated Sheryl Crow? Well, Renee is a GIANT STEP UP.
Go girl.
Glad to read so many positive comments about someone so I’ll add my own.Hope it all works out for her.
He is adorable! And they are an adorable couple. I hope he’s the one and they live happily ever after.
I like her. She looks good in these photos. She deserves to find a good guy.
Doyle Bramhall II has been Eric Claptons’ second guitar on tour for years. The man is an amazing guitarist and it’s a crime how little fanfare he has. I doubt they met in college, because of an old interview where he says he dropped out in 9th grade and he wishes he had finished HS. Such a weird thing to lie about.
I’m thinking the explanation for this is that Doyle didn’t actually go to college, but he played in Austin a lot where Renee went to college. She probably went to some of his shows and met him that way. The lines of gossip got crossed to turn it into “They went to college together,” when it’s that she met him while she was going to college.
I remember that interview very distinctly & if I recall it was a video interview on Rehearsals.com so no, Doyle did not attend college and he seemed regretful that he didn’t finish HS and told the audience it in retrospect he wished he had. I am also surprised that all the celebrity magazines keep saying he went to college with Renee. PR spin by Renee maybe or maybe some tabloid writer didn’t get their facts right and check their sources first and then all the other celebrity magazines just copied the incorrect info? One explanation might be that Doyle & Charlie Sexton, while in the Arc Angels, used to hang out at the U Of T restaurant, The Paradise Cafe, which inspired their song on the 1992 Arc Angels album. In the lyrics they sing about how they would go there for a bite to eat and the rowdy, partying college kids would drive them nuts! So I am thinking maybe that is how Doyle met Renee or she attended some of the Arc Angels shows or they ran in some of the same Austin crowds. BTW, I’m a big supporter of Doyle’s music and have interviewed him several times for Vintage Guitar Magazine. Happy he’s playing Crossroads Guitar Festival this year again with Clapton & touring with Clapton this spring.