Photo: Ant Anstead/Instagram
Cristy Lee remembers one thing about the day her co-host Ant Anstead first met his now-girlfriend Renée Zellweger on the set of their show — it was a whirlwind!
And while fans now know that Anstead, 42, and Zellweger, 52, hit it off on set and began dating soon after (PEOPLE confirmed their relationship back in June), Lee says she didn’t catch the sparks flying at the time because of the trio’s hectic schedule.
“Seriously, we had such an insane shoot schedule with so much stuff going on,” Lee says. “If there was magic brewing up between the two of them, it probably didn’t happen in that exact moment.”
Actualsparks were flying between Anstead and Zellweger, when they got another chance to work together just the two of them as he taught her how to doing some welding and grinding on one of the two cars they restored as a thank you gift for Jerome and Jerald, the caregivers who looked after the actress’s late publicist Nanci Ryder during her battle with ALS.
“How’s that feeling back there? Sparks flying in your face!” Zellweger joked as she sawed through the metal.
To which Anstead replied, “I know. I kind of like it.”
Renée Zellweger and Ant Anstead.Vera Anderson/Wireimage; Michael Kovac/getty
The trio reconnected over a video call later in the episode, during which Zellweger recalled Ryder’s flirty personality and Ant tried out his skills with the Oscar winner.
“Renee you look fantastic today. You’re glowing, your skin’s glowing, your hair looks great,” he says. But Zellweger shakes her head and gives him the “cut it out” gesture.
Renee Zellweger, Ant Anstead and Cristy Lee on Celebrity IOU: Joyride.Discovery+
Lee says she did notice thatshehad instant chemistry with Zellweger, explaining that they had a blast discussing their knowledge of cars.
“Renée was awesome,” Lee says of theJudystar. “It was obvious she was a car person just talking to her, and then she showed us that very quickly. So she and I definitely had that connection right away, just talking about women that love cars and know about cars. It was so great to have someone that was so enthusiastic about these projects working with us.”
Lee also admits filming the end of the episode made her quite emotional.
“I was teary-eyed for every one,” she says. “We didn’t actually get to meet the people that we were making these cars for until the day we gave them the car. So you would feel like you know this person. You have a connection with this person that you’ve never met. And of course, they’re excited. And there are lots of tears, and I cried at every [episode].”
Other celebrities appearing on this season ofJoyrideinclude James Marsden, whosurprised his brother-in-law in the most recent episode; Octavia Spencer, who surprises her hardworking hairdresser; Danny Trejo, who surprises his longtime friend; Tony Hawk, who surprises his office manager of 10 years and Mary J. Blige, who surprises her trusted assistant of over eight years.
Discovery+
Lee says she hopes that they can continue to work with more people to get the message across that giving back is important.
RELATED VIDEO: Renée Zellweger Supports Ant Anstead During ‘Supercar’ Gala for First Public Event as a Couple
“There are so many amazing celebs that I’m sure also have some really epic stories that we would love to team up with, and get in there and put some tools in their hands and get them working,” she says.
“The show isn’t about building cars for celebrities,” she adds. “It’s truly an IOU. This is for someone that was incredibly influential, impactful, important to this person’s life. And sometimes everybody needs a little help in order to find the ways to pay it forward. And that’s what we’re doing.”
Celebrity IOU: Joyridebegan streaming on Discovery+ on Monday, August 23. New episodes will drop on Mondays.
source: people.com
