Top Gun: Maverick’s Jay Ellis Marries Nina Senicar at a Garden Wedding in Tuscany
Actor Jay Ellis, who plays “Payback” in this summer’s blockbuster hit Top Gun: Maverick, met actor and model Nina Senicar in 2015 at a bar in Los Angeles. Their mutual friend, creative director Tony Mancilla—who ended up getting ordained so he could officiate the couple’s wedding—introduced them.
After five years of dating, Jay proposed to Nina at sunset on Dreamland Beach in Bali in January of 2019, and they began planning their wedding shortly after. “We always knew we wanted to get married in Italy because going there was the first trip we ever took together,” Nina explains. To that end, the two went to Italy to look for a wedding location in June of 2019, road-tripping for a week from Rome to Tuscany to Puglia and looking at about 15 venues and villas along the way. They eventually settled on Villa Mangiacane, a property surrounded by vineyards and olive groves in a small town called San Casciano in Tuscany.
But, like so many other couples, after months of planning and even sending out invitations, their plans were changed due to the pandemic. “At the time, Italy was one of the hardest hit areas in the world, on a strict lockdown and closed to tourists,” Jay remembers. “Like everyone else in the world, we weren’t sure how widespread it would be or how long any of it would last, so we had to cancel everything.”
The couple shifted their wedding date to be a year from July 9, 2020. “As the world slowly started to open up in 2021, we had a family loss that caused us to be away from home for about eight or nine months which resulted in our having to change our plans again,” Nina says. “And we finally landed on July 9, 2022.”
Toward the end of 2021, they sent out invites for the final time with a header that read “Third time the charm!” And like so many other couples, they did most of their wedding planning on Zoom, reviewing their color palettes and design schemes over the course of the two years. “Since both of our work schedules are so crazy we had only one weekend—72 hours—in March when we could travel to Italy to taste food, see flowers, linens, cutlery, plates, and glassware in person,” Nina says.
They worked with Jinane Kafrouny and Paolo Nassi of Regency Event Group to ensure the weekend would go as they envisioned and that COVID protocols were carefully followed. “Since we had so many people traveling from all over the world and the requirements to get in and out of Italy were pretty stringent, we sent out updates every few months with links to the Italian government’s COVID-19 response/protocol website,” Nina says.
From the start, Nina had an idea about the kind of dress she hoped to wear. “I wanted a simple off-white silk material without lace and sparkles, but at the same time something classic, timeless, and elegant,” she says. For that, she turned to Dolce Gabbana. “Stylist Apuje Kalu helped me coordinate with Dolce exactly what I wanted and the team was amazing! They understood right away what I had in mind, and when I saw the sketches for the first time, it looked exactly as I’d imagined it. Apuje and I met with the Dolce team in Los Angeles for measurements and to look at color swatches and fabric samples. Then, we did two fittings in Milan with Lucio Di Rosa and the design team and one in Florence and the dress was ready. The big tulle that was under the dress was actually taken from their Alta Moda collection.”
For jewelry, the bride wore a pair of diamond studs that served as her “something borrowed” from her best friend. Her grandmother’s ring was “something old.” “It was like having her with me,” Nina says.
Jay and Apuje have worked together for many years, so right after the actor told the stylist about the proposal, the conversation immediately turned to creating a custom tuxedo. “We talked about a bunch of silhouettes, lapels, and looks, but I always knew I wanted to wear something in the bordeaux family,” Jays says. “Dolce sent over three sketches, and I immediately gravitated to the third one. The fabric on the lapel was sourced; they had never used it before. The piping on the lapel and pockets was a pitch by Apuje that I loved and the rest was the Dolce team being the best at what they do.”
Guests were asked to wear earth tones for the ceremony, which took place at sunset. As everyone entered the property, they were directed into the herb garden where they were met with specialty drinks. Then they were led by the sounds of a string quartet into a courtyard where they took their seats.
