Serena Williams reveals the one tactic husband Alexis Ohanian used to win her over after ‘two hour interrogation’ on first date: ‘The way to my heart’
Serena Williams’ husband Alexis Ohanian seduced the tennis legend during their first date when he turned the conversation to one important topic: Marvel movies.
Williams, who is widely regarded as the greatest female tennis player of all time, first met Ohanian at the Italian Open in 2015, before the Reddit co-founder proposed to her two years later.
The couple has been married since November 2017, a month after they welcomed their first child, daughter Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr. Last August, they welcomed a second daughter, Adira River Ohanian.
In the latest episode of her ESPN+ docuseries “In The Arena,” Williams and Ohanian both relive their memorable first date nine years ago, when the 23-time Grand Slam champion arrived with her agent and assistant.
Serena Williams’ husband Alexis Ohanian seduced her on their first date by talking about Marvel superhero movies
Alexis described the evening as a “two-hour interrogation” before winning Serena over by bringing up Marvel’s historic superhero franchise.
But the American entrepreneur and investor said first: ‘Serena, her assistant, her agent and I were across the table, and they were bombarding me with questions.
‘It was two hours of interrogation and questioning. Do I have children, am I married. Nothing was taboo.’
Referring to her current agent Jill Smoller, Williams laughed: “Jill asked him straight up, ‘What’s up with your girlfriend?’ and he said, ‘I don’t have a girlfriend.’
“He said he broke up with her. It changed things when he said that because I thought, ‘Okay, now he’s not such a beast anymore.'”
She added: “During dinner he started talking about Iron Man and Marvel, and that just stole my heart.”
Serena opened up about her first date with Alexis during the latest episode of her docuseries
The pair became friends through Marvel films such as Iron Man, starring Robert Downey Jnr (pictured)
Ohanian said their first conversation was a “two-hour interrogation” before they found common ground
Ohanian recalls, “This wasn’t just a casual comment of, ‘Hey, I’ve watched a few movies.’ This was, ‘I’ve studied the text thoroughly, and I have strong opinions about this tradition.'”
Smoller, who also appears in the docuseries, said: “It was so fascinating because they both loved the same things. He loved sci-fi and cartoons and superheroes and I thought… she can finally talk to someone who loves the things that she does.”
After sharing their love of superheroes and science fiction on a date, Williams and Ohanian got engaged in early January 2017.
Later that month, the tennis star won the Australian Open while pregnant with their first daughter.