Who Is Alexandra Billings’ Wife Chrisanne Blankenship? Their Love Story
When you ask “who is Alexandra Billings’ wife,” you’re really asking how someone as bold, funny, and groundbreaking as Alexandra found lasting love—and how that love survived transition, illness, and Hollywood. The answer is Chrisanne Blankenship, a woman who has been beside her for decades as friend, partner, creator, and constant support.
Who Is Alexandra Billings?
Before you fully understand her marriage, you need a quick picture of who Alexandra is. You probably know her from Transparent, where she played Davina, one of the first openly trans actresses to portray a trans character in a mainstream TV series. You might have also seen her in The Conners, on stage in Wicked, or in other TV and theater roles.
But Alexandra isn’t just an actress. She’s also a singer, a teacher, a writer, and a long-time activist. She’s been out as a trans woman for decades, living openly through a time when trans representation in media was almost non-existent. On top of that, she has lived with HIV since the mid-1980s, which means she has navigated not only prejudice around gender identity, but also stigma around illness.
Knowing all that, you can already feel how important a strong, steady partner would be in her life. That’s where Chrisanne comes in.
Who Is Chrisanne Blankenship, Alexandra Billings’ Wife?
Chrisanne Blankenship is Alexandra Billings’ long-time wife and creative partner. She isn’t as publicly visible as Alexandra, but she’s woven through almost every chapter of Alexandra’s story. Chrisanne is a writer, director, and producer who has worked on projects connected to Alexandra’s life and art, like stage pieces and documentary-style work that reflect their history together.
Where Alexandra is often front and center—on stage, in interviews, in activism—Chrisanne tends to be the quieter presence just off to the side, shaping, supporting, and sometimes steering. You can think of her as part storyteller, part protector, and part co-architect of the life they’ve built.
She’s not just “the wife of a famous person.” She’s a creator in her own right and someone who chose to tie her life closely to a trans woman at a time when that was far from socially easy or safe.
How Alexandra Billings and Chrisanne First Met
Their story doesn’t begin in Hollywood. It starts in high school.
You can picture it: suburban hallways, school plays, drama class. Alexandra—then a teenager still figuring out her identity—meets Chrisanne in drama class at Schaumburg High School. They end up playing twins on stage in a school production, which feels almost symbolic now. That early shared role created an instant closeness: long rehearsals, inside jokes, and the kind of intense teen connection that sticks with you.
Back then, Alexandra hadn’t yet fully transitioned. She went through phases of drag performance and different identities before fully embracing herself as a trans woman. Through all those changes, Chrisanne remained in her orbit—sometimes friend, sometimes more than friend, but always present.
Their relationship didn’t snap into “happily ever after” overnight. It grew over time, surviving early adulthood, Alexandra’s early performing career, and some very dark periods involving addiction, illness, and financial struggle. The fact that they’re still together tells you how deep that early bond really was.
From Commitment Ceremony to Marriage and Family
Long before same-sex marriage was legal, Alexandra and Chrisanne made their own commitment. In the mid-1990s, they held a commitment ceremony in Chicago, gathering friends and family to publicly promise their lives to each other even though the law didn’t recognize their union.
For you, that’s an important detail. They didn’t wait for the world to catch up. They made their own vows anyway, insisting that their love was real and worth honoring, whether the state agreed or not.
Years later, after Alexandra’s gender confirmation surgery, they renewed their vows, affirming their commitment in light of everything they’d gone through: transition, illness, career shifts, and countless private battles. They also built a small, close family that includes their son, Samuel. It’s not the stereotypical, cookie-cutter family you see on greeting cards—but it’s deeply theirs.
When you look at that timeline, you see a relationship that didn’t just survive big changes; it adapted and grew through them.
Chrisanne’s Role in Alexandra’s Transition and Health Journey
Alexandra began transitioning long before trans people were widely accepted or understood. She came out and sought medical transition in a world that often tried to punish her for it. At the same time, she was living with HIV, which, in the 1980s and early 1990s, was essentially treated like a death sentence.
Through all of this, Chrisanne stayed.
Think about what that means in real, day-to-day terms. You’re talking about hospital visits, medications with rough side effects, fear, stigma, and constant uncertainty. You’re also talking about the emotional rollercoaster of transition—grief over what’s been lost, joy over what’s been gained, and the ongoing work of building a life that fits.
Alexandra has said more than once that she believes she’s alive because of Chrisanne. That isn’t poetic exaggeration. It’s a recognition that love can literally keep someone going—by pushing them to take their meds, show up to appointments, keep auditioning, keep writing, and keep believing they’re worth something even when the world says otherwise.
When you ask “who is Alexandra Billings wife,” part of the answer is: she’s the person who refused to let Alexandra disappear.
Life Together in Hollywood and Activism
Eventually, Alexandra’s work pulled them into the orbit of Hollywood. You see her on red carpets and TV sets, in theater programs and interviews. What you might not see is that Chrisanne is often nearby, just off camera, helping shape the choices behind those appearances and projects.
Their life now is a mix of art and activism. Alexandra uses her platform to speak about trans rights, HIV, recovery, and representation. Chrisanne supports that mission with her own creative work, helping craft stories, shape performances, and keep Alexandra grounded when the attention gets intense.
They show up at events as a couple, modeling something rare and valuable: a long-term marriage in which one partner is trans, both are queer, and neither is apologizing for it. For you, watching from the outside, their relationship becomes more than a private love story. It’s a public example that says, “Yes, this is possible. You can be yourself and be loved—fully and for a long time.”
Featured Image Source: nypost.com
