Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel are married

Following months of speculation, Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel have finally tied the knot in Southern Italy. The newlyweds confirmed the news in a statement to People magazine on Friday. The marriage is the first for both stars.

"It's great to be married, the ceremony was beautiful and it was so special to be surrounded by our family and friends," the couple told the magazine in a statement, according to a report by the Daily Mail.

Actor-singer Timberlake and actress Biel, who have been together for five years, said their vows in a romantic ceremony in Southern Italy in the company of close friends and family. The weeklong pre-wedding celebration is said to have cost nearly $6.5 million, according to RadarOnline.

According to reports, the Hollywood couple kept their wedding venue a secret from the media, and even kept their guests in the dark about the exact location of the ceremony after flying them out to Southern Italy a week before the nuptials.

Timberlake, 31, started dating Biel, 30, in 2007, but they split briefly in March 2011 only to reunite a few months later.

“The Social Network” heartthrob popped the question to the brunette beauty with a custom-designed engagement ring in December last year in Big Sky, Montana.

Timberlake, of “Friends with Benefits” fame, previously dished to UK’s Hello! magazine on how he asked Biel on their first date. He told the publication, “I did it the old fashion way—by telephone. That’s something I learned from both my stepdad and my grandfather—that there is a thing called chivalry and it doesn’t have to die with the birth of the internet.”

He continued, “The way I see it, if you’re asking a girl out on a date, it’s only right to do it in a way that she can hear your voice.”

The singer, who has been romantically linked in the past with Beyonce, Janet Jackson, Cameron Diaz and Scarlett Johansson, added, “I had to be pretty persistent in order to get her to say yes. But I have a fair amount of tenacity and if I want something I stick to it. And in the end she agreed.”

Timberlake also revealed that his relationship with Biel works well because they are always trying to act patient and compassionate towards each other.

He said, “Some days are better than other days for all of us—and if we have our good days and bad days individually, and then we’re dealing with someone else’s good and bad days on top of that, it’s going to add up.”

He added, “But what I have learned from my stepdad is something as important, which is patience and compassion. Because when you are living with someone else, those two qualities go a long way.”