911: Lone Star’s Natacha Karam is engaged to her longtime partner, actor John Clarence Stewart, telling HELLO! that, days after John dropped to one knee, she is still “buzzing” and “on cloud nine”.
The pair shared the news with fans on June 3, 2026 with a carousel of pictures on social media, and HELLO! can share new, exclusive pictures of their special day, including the details of Natacha’s custom Jean Dousset ring and why John proposed in their stunning Studio City home.
“The past year, as I’ve been getting everything together, we’ve had some conversations about our home, and she made it very clear how much our home means to her,” John shared.
“We’ve had some ups and downs, and it made me realize that I wanted to make another memory in our home – a really big memory in our home. There was no other place in the world that I would want to take us to the next level.”
A year ago, they made videos for their future selves in which John revealed that in the coming 12 months, he wanted to “take this relationship to the next level”. So Natacha had some idea of what may be happening when, on the morning of the proposal May 29, 2026, John asked her to delete the Ring camera app from her phone.
John took Natacha to Malibu for lunch and cocktails, and as they enjoyed their date day, a team from Los Angeles-based events planner The Heart Bandits entered their home and began the process of transforming it into a magical wonderland.
Rose petals were strewn across the floor, candles were dotted throughout, and a stunning floral arch was erected in the garden, and it was there that John dropped to one knee after they returned home.
Also waiting there? Their beloved dog Cleo, who came running to her parents dressed in a wedding dress that she wore for her appearance on 9-1-1: Lone Star when Natacha and John’s characters tied the knot.
“It wouldn’t have made sense without her,” said John. “It’s the three of us always; the inscription on the ring is Cleo’s name.”
“John’s proposal included “some very remarkable and moving” words, shared Natacha, adding that he praised her for helping him to “see the world through different, more colorful eyes and notice the details and things”.
“And if you look at the proposal? It is all this color and vibrancy and life, and I really do see how well he knows me. This is the way you behave for me and that makes me feel really special.”
Natacha is known for her love of vibrant and bold colors and patterns, shown through her fashion sense and home design, so John knew that the ring would need to stand out. Natacha gave him parameters but she revealed that she decided to hand over control to John – and her best friend since she was 14, Callum.
“I was left completely out of out — all I said was I wanted yellow gold, and something made for me and with a unique shape. When I opened the box, I was, for lack of a better word, gobsmacked. It was so much better [than I could have dreamed].”
John approached Jean Dousset, the great-great-grandson of Cartier, to design the ring, and the final piece features a two-band stack with the central stone, a brilliant cut oval, floating above a curved, snake-like band of diamonds with prominent gold claw prongs shaped like hearts.
The lower band has been left plain to allow Natacha to add her own mark.
“Her inspiration changed a lot over the years. The version of the ring that I received from her three years ago is different from the version two years ago, and that was different than the version six months ago, but there was this moment where the way she was talking, it was clear she committed to a certain shape,” shares John.
“I brought some of the inspiration to the designer, and I showed pictures of Tacha because Tacha is singular, truly, and so this had to be something that makes sense with everything else that she wears,” he continued.
“It couldn’t be something that existed in isolation; it had to complement who she is. and it had to be something that she can wear every day.”
Their love story began in 2020 on a dating app, and Natacha and John, who starred in Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist, spent the first few months falling in love virtually through poetry workshops and long Zoom calls.
Their first date came as Los Angeles reopened, with John driving from Orange County to West Hollywood, where Natacha was living. They had plans to go to a restaurant, but after months of getting to know each other virtually, being in person suddenly gave them both anxiety.
“I had so many things going through my mind [on the drive], all these things that I knew about her, and I still feel like a stranger, so I gave myself permission when I was on the way up that I could take my time; we could take our time,” shared John.
“Then, when I saw her, the last thing that I wanted was to try to rush to some kind of conclusion because the truth was, I really enjoyed her company, and we had wonderful conversations. I remember, we were quiet for a second, I leaned over to her and I said, ‘This is awkward, isn’t it?’ Then we sat on opposite ends of the couch, and I was like, ‘Is it OK if we just sit? And talk until it’s not awkward anymore?'”
“And then it was five days later, and he was still at my house!” laughs Natacha. “And we’ve been sitting down and talking ever since. It really is our favorite thing to do. We just sit down and put the world to right.”
© Arlen Mark
© Arlen Mark
© Arlen Mark
© Arlen Mark
© Arlen Mark
© Arlen Mark
© Arlen Mark
© Arlen Mark
© Arlen Mark
© Arlen Mark
© Arlen Mark
© Arlen Mark
