As we all know, breakups are hard — especially when a couple is in the public eye. Tabloid rumors, differing values, and competitive career paths are just a few things that can contribute to (and worsen) the end of a relationship. When it comes down to it, many different circumstances affect just how messy a breakup can get…
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Some former couples can put their past romantic feelings aside and come together for the good of their friendship or children…While other exes have no intentions of being friends and don’t shy away from the nitty-gritty details. From Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake to Hugh Grant and Elizabeth Hurley — here are seven celeb exes who publicly called each other out vs. six famous former couples who stayed friends (or at least kept things amicable):
1.Called each other out: Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake
Britney and Justin’s relationship was tabloid fodder for most of the early aughts…and that drama was renewed in 2023 after Spears released her shocking memoir, The Woman in Me. Among other allegations, the “Toxic” singer wrote that Timberlake was a serial cheater during their three-year relationship, encouraged her to undergo an abortion, and broke up with her over text.
Shortly after the couple’s 2002 breakup, Timberlake released the song “Cry Me a River.” In the music video for the song, Timberlake is shown as being cheated on by a Spears-look alike. At the time of the song’s release, Spears noted that she had already been branded as a “cheating slut and liar” by the press, and the thinly-veiled video didn’t help matters. She wrote, “Was I mad at being ‘outed’ by him as sexually active? No. To be honest with you, I liked that Justin said that. Why did my managers work so hard to claim I was some kind of young-girl virgin even into my twenties? Whose business was it if I’d had sex or not?”
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“The truth: I was comatose in Louisiana, and he was happily running around Hollywood.” She continued, “The thought of my betraying him gave [his] album more angst, gave it a purpose: shit-talking an unfaithful woman…Everyone felt very sorry for him. And it shamed me.”
At a January 2024 concert, Timberlake told the crowd, “I’d like to take this opportunity to apologize to absolutely f–king nobody,” and launched into “Cry Me a River.”
Spears quickly fired back on Instagram, posting a picture of a moon framed inside a basketball net with the caption, “Someone told me someone was talking shit about me on the streets!!! Do you want to bring it to the court or will you go home crying to your mom like you did last time??? I’m not sorry!!!” She then made her account private.
2.Kept Things Amicable: Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin
On March 25, 2014, the Shakespeare in Love actor and Coldplay vocalist announced their separation or “conscious uncoupling” after 10 years of marriage.
A statement on the Goop homepage read: “It is with hearts full of sadness that we have decided to separate…We have come to the conclusion that while we love each other very much, we will remain separate. We are, however, and always will be a family, and in many ways, we are closer than we have ever been.”
The pair stated they were “parents first and foremost” and asked the public for “our space and privacy to be respected at this difficult time.”
In 2020, Paltrow spoke to Drew Barrymore about her and Martin’s approach to co-parenting, “In a way, my relationship with Chris is better [now]. So, I do think that it can be done. I really wanted my kids to not be traumatized if it were possible. Chris and I committed to putting them first, and that’s harder than it looks.”
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3.Called each other out: Heidi Klum and Seal
After seven years of marriage, Klum and Seal filed for divorce in April 2012. A few months later, during an impromptu TMZ interview, Seal accused Klum of cheating on him with her bodyguard, Martin Kristen.
The now 61-year-old began ranting, “Look, boys, that’s what happens when two people separate. They move on, and that generally means [they have] other people in their lives. I necessarily don’t expect Heidi to all of a sudden become a nun, but as always, my main priority is the emotional well-being of our children.”
“To be quite honest, if there is going to be somebody else in [our children’s] lives, I’d much rather it was a familiar face,” the “Kiss From A Rose” singer said when asked about the rumors that Klum was dating Kristen. “I guess the only thing I would have preferred is that…I guess I didn’t expect any better from him, I would have preferred Heidi show a little bit more class and at least wait until we separated first before deciding to fornicate with the help, as it were.”
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Klum’s team released a statement on the model’s behalf, “It is sad that Seal has to resort to this kind of behavior and spread these untruths about the mother of his children.”
A few months prior, the Project Runaway star opened up to ELLE about her reluctance to discuss the reasons why her marriage was ending. “To the outside world, you don’t really share all the things that happen. You kind of share just the most amazing sides…But I don’t really want to get into any of that stuff. With my life, my family, my business — I want to go forward.”
4.Kept Things Amicable: Emma Stone and Andrew Garfield
The Spider-Man couple was not only an item on-screen but off-screen as well for nearly four years. The actors hit it off after meeting on the set of The Amazing Spider-Man. In 2012, Garfield told MTV News that he was “so happy” after learning Stone had accepted the role of Gwen Stacy, “Those are the days I’d look forward to, you know? For [my character] Peter as well, because Peter goes through some horrible stuff in the movie. There’s some joy to be had when experiencing his first love.”
Despite their cinematic love story, the couple called it quits in 2015; however, they have remained good friends. Stone opened up about their post-breakup relationship in October 2016, telling Vogue, “[He’s] someone I still love very much.”
During an interview on Vanity Fair’s Little Gold Men podcast in 2017, Garfield mentioned how proud he was of his ex’s success: “I’m her biggest fan as an artist. I’m constantly inspired by her work. I’m constantly inspired by how she handles and holds herself. So, for me it’s been bliss to be able to watch her success and watch her bloom into the actress she is.”
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5.Called each other out: Ariana Grande and Pete Davidson
The Wicked star and stand-up comedian made their official romantic debut in May 2018, and the unlikely pairing’s whirlwind relationship shocked fans when they announced their engagement the following month.
However, shortly after their engagement, Grande’s ex, Mac Miller, passed away — which Davidson later claimed spelled the end of his and the “thank u, next” singer’s relationship. In an interview with Charlemagne Tha God, he said, “I was like, ‘Listen, I get it, do whatever you’ve got to do, I’ll be here.’ I think I said, ‘I’ll be here until you don’t want me to be here.’ I pretty much knew it was around over after that. That was really horrible, and I can’t imagine what that s**t is like.” The couple officially broke off their engagement in October 2018.
The following August, Grande opened up about the pair’s highly publicized relationship, claiming that Davidson was a “distraction” from her breakup with Miller. “My friends were like, ‘Come! We’re gonna have a fun summer,'” she stated in reference to her move from Los Angeles to New York in 2018. “And then I met Pete, and it was an amazing distraction. It was frivolous and fun and insane and highly unrealistic, and I loved him, and I didn’t know him.”
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The comedian responded in his 2020 standup special, Pete Davidson: Alive From New York. He claimed that he had no prior intention of speaking about his relationship with Grande or the breakup, but after a friend told him about the Vogue interview, he felt he would share his side of the story.
“She has her songs and stuff, and this is what I have. You’re like, ‘Pete, this isn’t fair. You’re airing out dirty laundry. How could you do that? Where did she say this stuff? To her friends in the confidence of her own home?’” he said. “No, she said it on the cover of Vogue magazine. Can you imagine if I did that?” he continued. “My career would be over tomorrow if I spray painted myself brown and hopped on the cover of Vogue magazine and just started shitting on my ex.”
Davidson reiterated, “Can you imagine if I did that shit? Like, ‘Yeah, I was just f*cking her because I was bored, and then Fortnite came out.’ Sometimes life is a little unfair.”
6.Kept Things Amicable: Bruce Willis and Demi Moore
After meeting at the July 1987 premiere of the film Stakeout, Willis and Moore fell head over heels for each other and were married by November of that year. Things had fizzled out for the couple by the late ’90s, and in 1998, they officially announced their separation. However, the actors have maintained a loving friendship and co-parenting relationship — even going so far as to isolate with each other’s families during the pandemic.
Shortly after the couple’s divorce was finalized in October 2000, Willis told Rolling Stone of their breakup, “Things change. People grow at different rates. People change at different rates. It’s difficult for any couple to keep their marriage intact under the best of circumstances, and our marriage was under a huge magnifying glass all the time. So it might have been a little more difficult for us…I still love Demi. We’re very close. We have three children whom we will continue to raise together, and we’re probably as close now as we ever were. We realize we have a lifelong commitment to our kids. Our friendship continues. The institution has been set aside.”
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Moore opened up about her and Willis’ unique post-marriage relationship in her 2019 memoir, Inside Out, “It’s a funny thing to say, but I’m very proud of our divorce. I think Bruce was fearful at the beginning that I was going to make our split difficult and that I would express my anger and whatever baggage that I had from our marriage by obstructing his access to the kids — that I’d turn to all of those ploys divorcing couples use as weapons. But I didn’t, and neither did he.”
The Indecent Proposal star admitted that their divorce “wasn’t easy at first” but that they were eventually able to work together. “We managed to move the heart of our relationship, the heart of what created our family, into something new that gave the girls a loving, supportive environment with both parents.”
In the end, Moore said, “We felt more connected than we did before the divorce.”
7.Called each other out: Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez
The drama began in 2016 when Bieber threatened to delete his Instagram account after fan backlash because he posted photos with then-girlfriend Sofia Richie. The “Yummy” singer later posted a black-and-white photo of himself and Richie and captioned it, “I’m gonna make my Instagram private if you guys don’t stop the hate. This is getting out of hand, if you guys are really fans you wouldn’t be so mean to people that I like.”
In a rare move, Gomez commented on her ex’s “threatening” post: “If you can’t handle the hate, then stop posting pictures of your girlfriend lol – It should be special between you two only. Don’t be mad at your fans. They love you and supported you before anyone ever did.”
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Fans and “Jelena” shippers alike commended Gomez for speaking up (or instead commenting) on their behalf. However, Bieber wasn’t willing to bury the social media hatchet quite yet and responded to Gomez — leading to a comment section spat, “It’s funny to see people that used me for attention and still try to point the finger this way. Sad. All love,” before adding in a separate comment, “I’m not one for anyone receiving hate. Hope u can all be kind to my friends and each other. And yes I love my belibers.”
It seems as though Gomez got the final say with her comment: “Funny how the ones that cheated multiple times, are pointing the finger at the ones that were forgiving and supportive, no wonder fans are mad. Sad. All love.”
The Only Murders in the Building actor later posted a photo collage of herself with fans, seemingly as another dig at Bieber’s attitude towards fans.
8.Kept things amicable: Jason Momoa and Lisa Bonet
Much to fans’ surprise, Momoa and Bonet announced they were parting ways in January 2022 after nearly five years of marriage. On the Aquaman star’s Instagram, the then-couple wrote, “We have all felt the squeeze and changes of these transformational times. A revolution is unfolding, and our family is of no exception…feeling and growing from the seismic shifts occurring.”
The pair noted that they announced their separation “not because we think it’s newsworthy” but so that “as we go about our lives, we may do so with dignity and honesty.”
“The love between us carries on, evolving in ways it wishes to be known and lived. We free each other ~ to be who we are learning to become…”
Two months later, while at The Batman premiere — in which Bonet’s daughter, Zoë Kravitz, starred as Catwoman — Momoa told Entertainment Tonight’s Rachel Smith, “We’re [he and children, Lola and Nakoa-Wolf] just so proud [of Kravitz]. Lisa couldn’t be here, so we’re representing — me and the babies. We’re very excited to just be here…It’s still family, you know?”
The pair finalized their divorce in July 2024.
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9.Called each other out: Sophia Bush and Chad Michael Murray
During a SiriusXM interview with Andy Cohen in June 2018, Bush discussed her brief marriage to former One Tree Hill costar Chad Michael Murray. The pair were married in April 2005, announced their separation five months later (at the time, Bush attempted to file for an annulment but was rejected), and officially divorced in December 2006.
When Cohen asked for details of the costars’ short-lived marriage, the then-36-year-confessed, “How old was I? I don’t even know. It was like the second season.” Laughingly, she added, “But everybody’s been 22 and stupid. I don’t even know, and it was not a thing I actually really wanted to do.”
Shortly after, Murray’s representative released a statement claiming that Bush’s “story is ludicrous.” The rep continued, “Chad conducts himself in a completely professional manner and would never marry for any reason but love. Thirteen years since his divorce from Sophia, he has a very happy family life with his wife and children. He has completely moved on and doesn’t feel the need to engage in this type of behavior.”
In a May 2024 interview with The Cut, Murray alluded to his side of the story, “I was a baby [at the time of his and Bush’s marriage] I didn’t know up, down, left, right. You move out there and you go, ‘Well, what am I supposed to do now? Get married? That’s exciting!'”
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10.Kept things amicable: Jennifer Aniston and Justin Theroux
In February 2018 — after nearly three years of marriage — Aniston and Theroux released a joint statement announcing their divorce, “Normally we would do this privately, but given that the gossip industry cannot resist an opportunity to speculate and invent, we wanted to convey the truth directly. Whatever else is printed about us that is not directly from us, is someone else’s fictional narrative. Above all, we are determined to maintain the deep respect and love that we have for one another.”
Since then, the actors have maintained a friendship, as evidenced by their warm social media posts featuring each other throughout the following years. In a 2021 Esquire interview, when asked if he and the Friends star were truly on good terms, Theroux replied, “I would say we’ve remained friends. We don’t talk every day, but we call each other. We FaceTime. We text.”
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The then 49-year-old elaborated, “Like it or not, we didn’t have that dramatic split, and we love each other. I’m sincere when I say that I cherish our friendship. We can not be together and still bring each other joy and friendship. Also, she makes me laugh very, very hard. She’s a hilarious person. It would be a loss if we weren’t in contact, for me personally. And I’d like to think the same for her.”
A few months later, the exes reunited in person to film a reimagined live episode of The Facts of Life on ABC.
Recently, Theroux came to Aniston’s defense after she retorted to J.D. Vance’s “childless cat ladies” statement. “She is still very dear to me,” the Beetlejuice Beetlejuice actor revealed. “Of course, yeah, I feel protective. But she batted back criticism, as well she should.”
11.Called each other out: Jessica Simpson and Nick Lachey
In 2023, clips from Jessica Simpson and Nick Lachey’s short-lived reality show, Newlyweds: Nick and Jessica, went viral on TikTok, with users suggesting that Lachey seemed to be a “villain” to Simpson.
One particular clip repeatedly referenced as evidence of this claim was when a then-29-year-old Lachey called then-22-year-old Simpson a “brat.” The 98 Degrees singer said: “You’re a spoiled brat. You’re a bratty girl.” Simpson replied, “I am not. I’m a nice girl. I treat you very nice.”
In her 2020 memoir, Open Book, Simpson wrote, “I wish we were the kind of people who could divorce and stay friends. We weren’t, and I regret that my actions hurt him.” However, by 2023, it seemed the “With You” singer had changed her tune about her ex-husband, telling Bustle about the public’s “new” perception of him, “It’s amazing what publicity can do,” with a reported better-late-than-never shrug.
During a 2021 episode of Love is Blind, Lachey — who cohosts the show with his wife, Vanessa Lachey — seemingly made a dig at Simpson when he asked former contestant Matt Bolton, “[Marriage] is always better the second time, right?”
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12.Kept things amicable: Hugh Grant and Elizabeth Hurley
Hugh Grant and Elizabeth Hurley have stood by each other’s side through the years, with Hurley describing her and the Love Actually star’s relationship as “like brother and sister.”
The couple began dating in 1987 and withstood many ups and downs — including Grant’s infamous cheating scandal in 1995. However, their relationship continued after the incident. The couple eventually called it quits for good in 2000.
During an interview with the PEOPLE in the ’90s podcast, the model revealed: “I’m still extremely good friends with Hugh. You know, we went through so much together. But I’ve been thinking, one of the most important things to keep good relations with your exes is to have a lot of respect for their current life.” She elaborated, “We haven’t been romantically involved for 20 years, I think, even though we have such a strong friendship. But we’re always very aware that there are other people in our lives. There’s partners, there’s children. You can’t just, sort of, live in a lovely, rosy, mist of the past. You have to move with the times and be very respectful of the present, which we are.”
Grant is also the godfather to Hurley’s only child, Damian.
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13.And that time Rihanna called out all of her exes:
In true RiRi fashion, there was the time that Rihanna called out every single one of her exes.
In an October 2016 Instagram post, the “Diamonds” singer wrote, “None of my exs are married or in happy relationships so it’s safe to say that I wasn’t da problem lol” alongside a trophy emoji in the caption.
The Fenty Beauty founder had previously been romantically linked to notable celebs such as Drake and Travis Scott.
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