Who Went to Matthew Lowe and Emily Markus's Santa Barbara Wedding?

Here is who was there, who officiated, and what the day looked like.

Gwyneth Paltrow Officiated the Ceremony

The headline detail is the officiant. Gwyneth Paltrow led the outdoor ceremony, which makes sense once you know the history.

Paltrow has been close to the Lowe family for decades. She first met Sheryl Berkoff as a teenager, back when Berkoff worked as a makeup artist for Paltrow's mother, Blythe Danner. Rob Lowe was a guest at Paltrow's own 2018 wedding to Brad Falchuk, so having her return the favour for his son brought the friendship full circle.

Paltrow attended with Falchuk and wore a light grey dress with a large floral print, finished with gold strappy sandals. It is a reminder that the person at the front of the aisle matters as much as the setting. If you are planning your own ceremony, our guide on how long a wedding ceremony should run is a useful place to start.

The Celebrity Guest List

According to TMZ and People, the A-list guests included:

• Katy Perry, who was seated directly in front of Adam Levine and his wife

• Adam Levine and Behati Prinsloo

• Cameron Diaz, who sat beside the Saldañas

• Zoe Saldaña and Marco Perego-Saldaña

• Chris Pratt, with wife Katherine Schwarzenegger seated in the row behind him alongside her family

• Maria Shriver, Katherine's mother

The seating details come from aerial and ceremony photos published by Page Six, which also showed guests arranged in the shape of a heart around the chuppah. That kind of layout does not happen by accident. If you are planning something similar, our breakdown of the easiest way to build a wedding seating chart covers how to make a creative floor plan work.

The Lowe Family in the Front Row

Rob Lowe and Sheryl Berkoff sat in the front row, joined by Matthew's younger brother, John Owen Lowe, 30. The couple have been married for 35 years, and Rob has been open about wanting grandchildren. On The Kelly Clarkson Show in June 2026 he joked that he was not even pretending otherwise.

Also present were Rob's brother Chad Lowe, his wife Kim Painter, and their daughters Mabel and Nixie. It was the family's first public appearance since the death of their 13-year-old daughter Fiona on September 29, less than two weeks before the wedding. The family has asked for privacy as they grieve, and Chad has since shared public messages about losing a child.

Where the Wedding Took Place

Reports agree the ceremony was outdoors in the Santa Barbara area. TMZ identified the venue as the Rosewood Miramar Beach in Montecito, while other reports described a private residence setting. Either way, the imagery was unmistakably Californian: a grassy aisle, palm trees, and a white floral chuppah as the focal point.

Montecito has quietly become one of the most sought-after wedding addresses in North America. For couples drawn to the same coastal look, our North America destination guide and our roundup of the wedding hotspots to watch in 2026 both cover the region.

What the Bride and Groom wore

Emily Markus wore a strapless white gown with a train, paired with a sheer veil, a classic choice that stood out against the relaxed outdoor setting. Matthew Lowe kept it simple in a black suit with a white shirt.

The veil is worth noting on its own. Plenty of 2026 brides have been skipping it altogether, as we covered in our look at what brides are wearing instead of the traditional veil, so Markus's decision to go traditional read as deliberate. The white floral chuppah also fits a wider trend toward statement ceremony structures, something we rounded up in our favourite wedding backdrops and aisles from recent weddings.

How Matthew Lowe and Emily Markus Got Here

The couple announced their engagement over Fourth of July weekend in 2025. Matthew shared a series of proposal photos on Instagram with the caption "Lord of the rings," which tells you most of what you need to know about his sense of humour.

Markus works as a social media and digital content executive. Ahead of the wedding she posted an Instagram Story teasing "wedding weekend eve," suggesting the celebrations stretched across multiple days, a format that has become standard for high-profile couples. Our guide on whether you need a wedding welcome party explains how to structure that kind of weekend.

A ceremony with a celebrity officiant, a heart-shaped seating plan and a multi-day guest list does not come together without serious logistics. For couples who want that level of detail without the stress, Wonderland Concierge matches you with planners, venues and vendors who do this for a living, starting with a free discovery call. If you would rather build it yourself, Wonderland Studio gives you free planning tools, including a seating planner that can handle a layout as ambitious as the one the Lowes pulled off.

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