- - Woman Accidentally Tags the Wrong Disney Performer on Social Media, Says Mistake Started ‘Surreal’ Romance (Exclusive)

Meredith WilshereFebruary 16, 2026 at 2:30 AM

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Madisen Gulledge and her husband, Casey

Courtesy of Madisen Gulledge

Madisen Gulledge loved going to see Finding Nemo: The Musical at Disney World while working at the theme park

One accidental Instagram tag of the performers led her to meet her husband

Gulledge tells PEOPLE she went "from a fangirl sitting in the audience to marrying someone from the cast"

Madisen Gulledge has always loved Disney, but never imagined that the theme park would serve as the backdrop for her very own fairytale love story thanks to an accidental social media mix-up.

In 2019, Gulledge was taking part in the Disney College Program, an internship for college students and recent graduates who live and work at the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Fla.

During that time, she and her friends loved going to see Finding Nemo: The Musical “a few times a week." The group would often post clips from the performance on their Instagram Stories and tag the performers to “hype them up" — including the man in a fish costume, who ended up becoming Gulledge's husband.

Madisen Gulledge and her husband, Casey.

Courtesy of Madisen Gulledge

“I accidentally tagged the wrong person in a video one day, and they corrected me on who it was (my now husband, Casey). That one little mistake is what put me on his radar,” Gulledge, 28, shares.

That simple mistake changed everything, and from there, she and Casey began messaging on social media.

“Our first date happened the very first day we met in person. My friend and I had been invited to meet the cast by one of his friends who thought we’d be cute together, and that was the first time I met him in full costume, which feels very on-brand for our story,” Gulledge shares.

“After the show, he mentioned he was about to get off work and asked if I wanted to hang out for a bit," she continues. "I was internally geeking out, but I tried to play it cool and said, ‘Sure.’ "

The two ended up staying in Disney's Animal Kingdom all night, "riding rides and grabbing snacks."

"It was simple, but it felt special, like this surreal little Disney day that somehow turned into our first date," she says. "After a few more park days together, we officially started dating in June 2019."

From the beginning of their relationship, she says there was “immediate best friend energy.” They found out they had lots in common, both being from Michigan and even knowing a lot of the same people.

The Gulledge family

Courtesy of Madisen Gulledge

“Even before we officially started dating, we both kind of had this unspoken feeling of, ‘Oh… this might be it,'" she shares. "It sounds dramatic, but it didn’t feel dramatic at the time. It just felt easy. It felt unconventional, but at the same time, everything about us made sense."

Fast forward, and the couple has been together for almost seven years. They got engaged in 2021, married in 2022 and welcomed their daughter, Harper, in 2023.

“When I look at it like that, it feels like we packed a whole lifetime into just a few years,” Gulledge tells PEOPLE.

While she doesn't go to Disney quite as often anymore, her husband is still part of the musical.

“We still go about once a week, and most of the time, it’s to see him perform. We joke that it’s ‘bring your girls to work’ day," she says. "Our 2-year-old has seen Finding Nemo so many times that she knows all the songs and can basically quote every line and even sometimes performs the choreography."

The whole experience to Gulledge is “surreal to think about.”

“From a fangirl sitting in the audience to marrying someone from the cast and now bringing our daughter to see her dad perform on the same stage. It’s a story I’ll never get tired of telling, and honestly, it reminds me every day how unexpected life can be in the best ways,” Gulledge says.

“The moral of the story is don’t be afraid to shoot your shot! Who knew a few DMs and Disney trips could lead to marriage, a family and a lifetime of memories?”

on People

Original Article on Source

Source: “AOL Entertainment”