James Hetfield Gets Engaged to Girlfriend Adriana Gillett While Scuba Diving

Sixty feet below the surface, surrounded by whale sharks, James Hetfield held up a sign that read "Adriana Gillett, will you marry me?" She gave a thumbs-up, ring box in hand. Metallica's official Instagram made it official on March 15 with three words: "She said yes!"

The image the band shared shows both Hetfield, 62, and Gillett in full scuba gear, suspended in blue water with whale sharks visible in the frame. Hetfield presented his written proposal on what sources describe variously as a laminated sign or a piece of paper, but the message was unambiguous regardless of medium. Gillett, for her part, posted the same underwater photograph to her own Instagram alongside a close-up shot of one of the whale sharks, captioning it: "The BEST birthday trip surprise. Swimming with whale sharks on Friday the 13th with the most unique, special, and romantic proposal a Pisces could ever imagine. In a sea full of fish, we caught each other. Thank you God for putting us together."

The proposal was, by her account, a birthday surprise, which places the dive on Friday the 13th of March, two days before the public announcement.

There is no ring visible in the proposal photo itself in the conventional sense; Gillett holds the ring box, the moment of acceptance captured mid-water rather than in the polished stillness of a restaurant or rooftop. Whatever the setting choice sacrifices in terms of showcasing the stone, it gains entirely in narrative. The piece exists here as a plot point, a confirmation, something held in open hands beneath the ocean.

Hetfield and Gillett had been together since approximately 2023, going public after his divorce from costume designer Francesca Tomasi was finalized in 2022. The marriage to Tomasi had lasted 25 years; the couple share three children. The pair appeared publicly together at the 2025 Tribeca Festival for a screening of the documentary Metallica Saved My Life. Photographer Lee Jeffries, who has shot both portraits and tour work for the band, commented on Gillett's post with two words: "amazing news."

For a musician who has spoken openly about rehab and the sustained personal cost of four decades on the road, the engagement carries weight beyond the social post. The ring box surfaced from the deep. She said yes.