Inside the tear-jerking true love story behind Nobody Wants This as Netflix viewers swoon over the series

In the six days it’s been on Netflix, Nobody Wants This has received rave reviews from fans and labelled ‘as funny as When Harry Met Sally’ by critics. 

But this charming rom-com – which follows an LA-based podcast host (played by Kristen Bell) falling in love with a ‘hot rabbi’ (Adam Brody) – isn’t exclusively a work of fiction. 

Erin Foster, 42, has revealed that she leaned heavily on her own romance with Jewish record label owner Simon Tikhman when writing the series.

When they met at the gym in 2018, Erin was best known for starring in the the mockumentary Barely Famous with her sister Sara. Like Joanne and Morgan in the show, the siblings would later go into business together and found the fashion brand ‘Favorite Daughter’.

Although Simon isn’t a rabbi like the character of Noah, Erin’s husband did tell her on their first date that he had to marry a Jewish woman.

Pictured: Kristen Bell and Adam Brody in the new Netflix rom-com TV series Nobody Wants This

Despite their different cultural backgrounds, Erin and Simon’s love blossomed – and the challenges they faced became the foundation of her hit TV show.

Here FEMAIL delves into the true story behind the series that is capturing hearts the world over.

Erin’s complicated family history and royal connection 

Erin Foster is the daughter of songwriter David Foster, 74, and his second ex-wife Rebecca Dyer, 69.

The couple were married from 1982 to 1986 and share Sara, 43, Erin, 42, and Jordan, 38.

David went on to marry three more times and his current wife is former American Idol contestant Katharine McPhee, who is 35 years his junior. 

The music industry heavyweight, who is just a year younger than King Charles, has been described as a ‘father figure’ to Harry, and also helped the Duke and Duchess find their Canadian hideaway in 2020 before they later moved to Montecito, California.

In May 2020, Katharine McPhee told Access Hollywood: ‘My husband has a really, really beautiful relationship with Harry. They’re so cute. They’re like father and son.’ 

Pictured: Erin Foster with her father David, who has been married five times and has six children

Pictured: David Foster with Prince Harry at the Santa Barbara Polo Club in June 2022. David’s wife has said they have a ‘beautiful relationship’

Pictured: Erin Foster with her sister Sara (centre) and step-mother Katharine McPhee (right) in August 2019

In an interview with Los Angeles Times, Erin – who also had a small part in The OC in 2005 – explained how her mother went on to date a Jewish man following her divorce from David and she came to prefer going to temple than church.

Before meeting Simon, Erin also attended some Judaism classes with a Jewish friend and said her ‘complicated family structure’ made her open to structured religion that she lacked growing up.

In an episode of The World’s First Podcast with Erin & Sara Foster, the Nobody Wants This creator told her sister how she first spotted Simon at their gym.

She recalled: ‘We would see each other every other day at 9am. I just started to notice him and being like, “Who is that cute guy doing pull-ups and smiling at me?”‘

Erin then tracked down Simon’s private Instagram account and the pair began exchanging messages – but he did wait two days to accept her follow request.

Simon joked on the podcast: ‘I was scared because I had a really good time slot at the gym.’ 

Simon’s first date revelation 

In an episode of The World’s First Podcast with Erin & Sara Foster, the Nobody Wants This creator told her sister how she first spotted Simon (pictured) at their LA gym

Pictured: Erin Foster and husband Simon Tikhman. The couple met at their gym in 2018 and married in 2020

Eventually, the couple went on their first date and decided to get to know each other more over juice – which they joked is ‘so LA’.

During that date, Simon told Erin: ‘Whoever I marry, she has to be Jewish.’

Unlike the character of Noah, Simon is not particularly religious – but he felt an obligation to continue his family’s lineage as his parents were forced to flee the Soviet Union in 1979 after being persecuted.

He told the LA Times: ‘I really respect my parents and know the adversity they went through because they were Jewish. I wouldn’t want to disappoint them.’ 

Despite Simon’s marriage revelation, Erin recalls how she never once shied away from the idea of converting to Judaism – as she was instantly drawn to how ‘funny, cool modern’ and almost ‘old-fashioned’ her husband is.

She told Harper’s Bazaar: ‘If he had asked me to be in a cult, I would’ve been in a cult. I was 35 and needed to lock it down. So I thought, “Of course I will.”’ 

In June 2018, Simon asked Erin to be his girlfriend when he skipped his weekly basketball game to pick her up from the airport.

Pictured: Erin Foster and her husband Simon Tikhman, who served as the inspiration for her hit Netflix show Nobody Wants This

Netflix’s charming rom-com follows an LA-based podcast host (played by Kristen Bell) falling in love with a ‘hot rabbi’ (Adam Brody)

Commemorating their three year anniversary on Instagram, Erin recalled how it was a ‘shocking move’ from him.

She added: ‘I was so nervous and embarrassed wheeling my little bag out to him, stopping in the bathroom to put makeup on. And it all worked out! Happy fake anniversary you forgot about. Simon, I’m obsessed with you.’ 

Elsewhere in her Harper’s Bazaar interview, Erin delved into some of difficulties they faced in the early days of their relationship – which have made their way into the show.

She explained: ‘Simon’s parents are Russian Jews who fled the Soviet Union because they were Jewish. They had been married for 40-something years. And Sara and I come from this very entertainment-centred Los Angeles family with lots of marriages and divorces. 

‘We couldn’t have been from more different worlds, and those different worldviews really put us in a unique position to have … not conflict, but challenges moving forward and starting a life together.’

Simon’s proposal at a fake wedding 

Pictured: Erin Foster poses with her engagement ring after Simon proposed at a friend’s fake vow renewal in 2019

In August 2019, Simon proposed to Erin in Napa Valley – and threw her off the scent by throwing what she thought was a friend’s vow renewal. 

To keep up the guise, the record label owner event bought signs and balloons and pretended that all the other guests had gone on a wine tour.

As he popped the question, Simon had a professional photographer on standby and Erin’s family jumped out after she said yes.

She said at the time: ‘That was the best day of my life. I love Simon and I can’t believe he loves me back.’ 

Ahead of their wedding, Erin converted to Judaism and attended classes at the Wilshire Boulevard Temple. 

Simon Tikhman and Erin Foster attend Netflix’s Nobody Wants This – Favorite Daughter Fan Screening at Bay Theatre

Her 10 weeks of training at the American Jewish University ended with a trio of rabbis asking if she was ‘ready to be hated by people’ and whether she would continue being Jewish if she separated from Simon.

The couple married in January 2020 in a lavish New Year’s Eve wedding in Nashville. 

The bride looked sensational in a Danielle Frankel gown with sheer puffy sleeves, while her husband wore a coordinating jacket with black slacks and bowtie. 

‘I got to marry the love of my life,’ Erin later wrote on Instagram. ‘And hopefully will never have to look at a seating chart again for as long as I shall live.’

Erin sells ‘love letter’ of a TV show and Simon’s compromise

After the wedding, Erin – who has also served as Bumble’s creative head since 2017 – took a break from writing and acting – instead opting to concentrate on founding the brand Favorite Daughter with her sister Sara.

She told the LA Times: ‘When I met Simon, I really felt like I might have to choose between being happy with the person I was meant to be with, or being inspired.

‘Because there was nothing funny about what was happening.’

The premium fashion brand was founded in December 2020 and opened its first store in Los Angeles the following year.

However, the rabbis questions during the final stages of her conversion stayed with Erin – and she decided to start writing a show inspired by her real-life love story.

Erin then sold the first draft of the show – which was originally named Shiksa – to Fox without telling her husband that it was loosely based on their relationship.

After her husband ‘freaked out’ over the sale of the show, Erin and Steve Levitan – who created Modern Family – decided to move Noah’s character away from Simon and make him a rabbi

Having been in the public eye her whole adult life, Erin admitted that she didn’t even consider it could be a problem for Simon, who ‘freaked out’ over the news.

He told the LA Times: ‘I’m from a very private family. My mom would always tell us stories about how if you said the wrong thing in the Soviet Union as a Jew, you could be taken to jail.’

As such, Erin and Steve Levitan – who created Modern Family – decided to move Noah’s character away from Simon and make him a rabbi. 

However, Erin is adamant that they have maintained Simon’s essence in the character and says the series is a ‘love letter’ to her husband, who is her ‘muse’.

Despite Simon’s fears, Erin’s in-laws were incredibly supportive of the show and she detailed how she spent hours on the phone with her father-in-law discussing storylines. 

Baby joy after over 20 rounds of IVF 

Pictured: Erin Foster and Simon Tikhman before the birth of their daughter Noa Mimi in May 2024

Earlier this year, Erin and Simon welcomed their daughter Noa Mimi Tikhman after undergoing extensive fertility treatment.

Discussing their fertility journey on Instagram, Erin revealed that they had undergone ‘over 20 failed rounds of IVF’.

She wrote: ‘At some point in the process, I just went numb. I stopped feeling the highs (there weren’t any) or the lows (there were too many). 

‘I stopped reacting after bad news or letting anyone talk to me about it.’

Noa was born at home in May 2024 – which Erin later described as ‘truly the  most insane’ experience of my life with the best ending’.

Simon added on their podcast: ‘I got 40,000 steps in just from pacing. You’re nervous about your wife, you’re nervous about your daughter. 

‘She had a few exorcism-type moments I had to walk away from. But I’m in awe of what she did.’