Inside The Summer I Turned Pretty Star Christopher Briney's Real-Life Relationship

Christopher Briney is a rising star with a thriving real-life romance. The "Summer I Turned Pretty" actor portrays Conrad in the popular show based on a book by author Jenny Han alongside co-stars such as Lola Tung and Gavin Casalegno. During a recent People interview, Briney opened up about his earliest exposure to acting as a young student. "I did a few plays, and teachers said things that inflated my ego and made me think I could actually do it," Briney said. "I've been very, very lucky," he added while discussing his achievements. Briney then mentioned his circle of creative friends when asked about how he spends his time away from set. "I enjoy ... my friends and my life with my friends," Briney said. "We're all creative people, so it's fun to brainstorm and come up with different projects."

One independent project that Briney has participated in — alongside someone he is close to in his personal life — is a 2021 short called "Reasons To Be Pretty," in which Briney acted with Isabel Machado. The two portrayed a couple whose relationship is coming to an end as they meet face to face and experience a tense exchange. Though they convincingly pulled off the roles of partners who are at odds in the short, in real life the two share a much different dynamic.

Off-screen, actor Christopher Briney is in a long-term romance with Isabel Machado. As reported by PopSugar, Briney and Machado likely met as they both attended Pace University, and Briney first appeared on Machado's Instagram account in a 2018 post which showed the two walking with friends. Machado's bio states that, like Briney, she is a performer who obtained a degree in acting from Pace. Her resume notes that she has a background in theater and singing, plus she has appeared in both film projects and web series.

In June 2022, Briney posted an image and video of himself and Machado on Instagram and revealed that the two were celebrating being in a relationship for one year. In honor of the milestone, Briney wrote, "A whole year!? I could never want anything else." A month prior, Machado shared a sweet photo via her social media account of herself and Briney kissing by a body of water. She also mentioned another anniversary of theirs, stating, "happy being honest about our feelingsiversary ... so glad we kiss now." In addition to these tributes, Briney and Machado have publicly shown their positive feelings for each other through numerous other posts and comments. 

Celeb couple Christopher Briney and Isabel Machado are partners who aren't shy to display love and encouragement toward each other. On June 17, Briney took to Instagram to share images of himself, Machado, and their friends while attending the premiere of "The Summer I Turned Pretty," writing, "Get you some friends like these." One of these photos showed him and Machado lovingly embracing on the red carpet of the celebration. More recently, on September 12, Briney posted images on social media of himself from the Toronto International Film Festival. In some of the pictures, he stood alongside his legendary "Daliland" costar, Sir Ben Kingsley. Machado wrote in response, "proud of you, beautiful boy," to her beau.

Briney's comments on Machado's social media posts reveal his deep affection for his significant other. On September 15, Machado posted a series of Instagram images of herself from a photoshoot, on which Briney commented, "You are a dream." Machado also posed in a black midi dress for photos that she posted on October 7. Briney again left a lovey-dovey comment, writing, "Oh wow ... just wow." These warm feelings are mutual: Machado responded to Briney's September 19 Instagram post honoring the premiere of "Daliland" by commenting, "Love you," to show support for Briney's celebration. These two performers definitely seem like they have a sweet love story that's only gotten stronger with time!