ABC via Getty Reba McEntire and Rex Linn
Reba McEntire is experiencing some art imitating life.
After the Grammy Award winner, 67, was announced as part of the season 3 cast of ABC’s Big Sky back in May, Deadline reported that her boyfriend Rex Linn will join her in the show as her onscreen husband, sharing a first-look image of the couple playing Buck and Sunny Barnes.
Their characters are the owners of the successful glamping company Sunny Day Excursions, which has a history of missing customers. The role will also mark McEntire’s first time playing a villain.
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“We’re having a blast,” McEntire told Deadline. “We’re still in the middle of shooting. We were on set last night [Aug. 11] and there was a full moon. I think we broke around 12:54 a.m. MT. It was a long night but so beautiful. We are really loving it.”
Linn, 65, raved about his girlfriend’s performance: “Wait until you see her in this!”
Reba McEntire/Instagram Rex Linn and Reba McEntire
The couple can also be seen together in the upcoming Lifetime movie The Hammer, in which she also reunites with her Reba costar Melissa Peterman.
The trailer dropped Friday, showing a first look at McEntire as lawyer Kim Wheeler, who fills in for a slain Nevada judge and investigates his murder as her sister Kris (Peterman) becomes the prime suspect. Linn plays “a mysterious cowboy with unknown motives,” according to a release
McEntire had Peterman, 51, as a guest on her podcast Living & Learning in October 2020 when she revealed that she was dating Linn. They later made their red carpet debut as a couple at the CMA Awards, and they recently attended this year’s 94th Academy Awards together.
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The pair was longtime friends before they reconnected during the COVID-19 pandemic, developing a long-distance romantic relationship during quarantine. They’ve been inseparable since, and McEntire raved about Linn to PEOPLE last year when she had him on Living & Learning.
“It was important for me to include guests that would excite my listeners, and I think we have the perfect line-up this season. To be my guest for the first episode, I invited the very talented actor, Rex Linn, who just happens to be my boyfriend!” she said in October. “This is the first time we’ve had any kind of long-form public conversation, so I’m glad we could do that on this show.”
“I’m excited for people to get to know Rex the way I do and hear some of his amazing and funny stories. I think everyone will love it and love him as much as I do,” McEntire added.
