TV Romance
9 Couples From ‘The Fosters’ Ranked, From Brandon & Callie to Jude & Connor
Wow, Jesus, what were they feeding you at wrestling camp? You look so much like Peter Kavinsky now…
On June 3, 2013, The Fosters hit ABC Family (now Freeform), introducing a blended family with a lot of love to spare. In the pilot, we met Callie Jacob (Maia Mitchell), a teenager in the foster system who gets released from juvie and moves in with the Adams Foster family. From running away to save her little brother, Jude (Hayden Byerly), to falling for her foster parents’ oldest son, Brandon (David Lambert), Callie makes a splash in her new family right from the start. What follows is anything and everything you could ever imagine taking place in a teen drama. Trust us, it’s all there.
Here at Swooon, we love a good romance, and we can say that without a doubt, The Fosters gave us some of the best couples of the 2010s. Five seasons, one spinoff (Hey, Good Trouble fans, we see you!), and 12 years later, it’s safe to say we still have a lot of strong opinions about who Callie and the rest of her Fosters siblings should have ended up with.
Scroll to find out our definitive ranking of couples from The Fosters, from the absolute worst to the best of the best. Do you agree with our ranking? Comment below with your favorite couple from the show!
9. Callie & Brandon
This is one couple of “Outlaws” we could live without. Sure, Callie and Brandon were set up to be the main relationship of the show from the pilot episode, and we’ll admit, their chemistry was intense. But, there was so much at stake for Callie when it came to finding her home with the Adams Fosters, and nothing about her romance with their son, Brandon, was good enough to risk it. Plus, as time went on, every time they circled back to each other, it felt a little bit more like siblings with weird romantic tension.
8. Callie & AJ
Callie and Brandon in a different font: Callie’s romantic relationship with AJ (Tom Williamson) wasn’t worth the challenges that came with it. However, for us, this pairing ranks higher than Callie and Brandon because Callie came into AJ’s life exactly when he needed her the most. While romance ultimately wasn’t in the cards for them, Callie was one of AJ’s biggest advocates, leading to moving in with Mike (Danny Nucci).
7. Brandon & Eliza
While Brandon and Eliza (Abigail Cowen, later Megan West in Good Trouble) get married at the end of The Fosters, their relationship felt a little lackluster. The couple visited the Coterie in Good Trouble multiple times as well, but, unfortunately, they gave us nothing besides an intro to another character’s love interest.
6. Callie & Aaron
Callie had many love interests throughout The Fosters, and one of her best was definitely Aaron (Elliot Fletcher). Callie and Aaron are drawn together through their passion for social justice. However, their romance was not entirely smooth sailing and gave us loads of drama as they started off as friends while Callie was dating AJ.
5. Mariana & Mat
Personally, we never had to put on a fully staged, original musical for a high school project, but we’re so happy Brandon did. Mariana (Cierra Ramirez) and Mat (Jordan Rodrigues) were nothing special the first time around. However, when they reunited to play star-crossed lovers in Brandon’s “R + J: A Romeo and Juliet Tale,” causing them to confess that they still have feelings for each other, we were sold on the pairing. If Mariana hadn’t gone on to Good Trouble, we would have been very content to believe they ended up together.
4. Stef & Lena
Stef (Teri Polo) and Lena (Sherri Saum) walked so every other couple on this list could run. As the golden standard for a healthy relationship (for both their family and the viewers of the show), Stef and Lena are two of the best TV moms to grace our screens. While other couples gave us more interesting or swoonworthy storylines, Stef and Lena certainly deserve their flowers, too.
3. Callie & Jamie
Callie and Jamie (Beau Mirchoff) got in by the skin of their teeth. These two had an undeniable spark when they first met at Brandon and Eliza’s engagement party in the final season of The Fosters. (Jamie is Eliza’s older brother.) Their playful and flirty banter continued when they reunited for Brandon and Eliza’s wedding in Turks and Caicos. They shared their first kiss at the wedding, which allowed them to be on this list. That kiss was the start of a beautiful love story that continued in Good Trouble. Callie spent her entire life up until that point always trying to protect everyone she loved. That was an emotional load for her to carry. Jamie was the first guy Callie trusted enough to protect her heart. He challenged her—they certainly had their differences—in a healthy way. Jamie was a great partner in supporting Callie and encouraging her to reach her fullest potential. There were hiccups along the way, but these two got their happily every after. And their chemistry? Almost too hot for Freeform!
2. Jude & Connor
Twelve years ago, Connor (Gavin Macintosh) ate a sandwich wearing blue nail polish to support his new buddy (and soon-to-be first love), Jude (Hayden Byerly). Dare we say, as a society, we have yet to witness anything as singularly moving as that moment since. What started as an innocent friendship turned into a coming-of-age romance that ripped through the status quo of 2010s teen dramas. Even though Jude and Connor parted as friends, in our world, they were endgame. For anyone who doesn’t believe us, let us know the last time a relationship of yours ended in a retroactive “goodbye kiss” following years of no contact in the comments below. No, really. We’re waiting.
1. Jesus & Emma
While The Fosters gave us many top-tier romances, Jesus (Jake T. Austin, later Noah Centineo) and Emma (Amanda Leighton) are at the top of our list. Aside from being perfectly matched, the couple got together at the end of the first season, which allowed viewers to watch them grow together and stand by each other’s side through the end of the series. The Fosters‘ very own Nathan and Haley, we still cry every time we think about Jesus’ high school hallway proposal. While Jesus and Emma were never physically with the rest of the family on Good Trouble, we were thrilled that the show gave us closure on their relationship, revealing over FaceTime that they finally got engaged for real.
