Whether they're amicable or painfully brutal, celebrity breakups often play
out in the public eye. And with the added glare of the spotlight, things can appear
friendly — or really, really bad. From the harsh to the heartfelt, these are the most surprising
things celebs have said about their exes. Former Victoria's Secret Angel Miranda Kerr and
actor Orlando Bloom were married from 2010 through 2013. The former couple have since remained close
as co-parents to their son, Flynn. But in 2021, on the "Moments with Candace Parker" podcast,
Kerr admitted that her ex can sometimes feel more like a sibling. She joked,
"He's like a brother, and most of the time, an annoying brother."
Thankfully, Kerr has some help with the blended family situation, thanks to Bloom's pop star
fiancée, Katy Perry. Kerr now even counts the singer as a close friend. She said,
"[Katy] helps me deal with him, because she can deal with him. […] I love her. I mean,
it'd be safe to say I love her more than Flynn's dad."
"I adore Katy and I just feel so happy that
Orlando has found someone that makes his heart so happy."
Kerr and her now-husband, Snapchat founder Evan Spiegel,
have such a strong relationship with Bloom and Perry that the families often join together for
milestone events and even travel together. Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt may now be on
friendly terms more than a decade after their highly-publicized marriage ended in 2005. But
that hasn't always been the case. The pair have reunited a handful of times in recent years,
and in 2021, Aniston told Howard Stern that she and Pitt are "buddies."
But the "Friends" alum wasn't feeling as kind-hearted 15 years ago.
"She'll tell, like, little arguments that we had,
in the press, or on shows, and I'll go 'Why, why…don't take me out. Take yourself out.'"
Shortly after the couple separated, Pitt famously posed with then-rumored girlfriend,
Angelina Jolie for a very revealing W magazine spread. The two were cast as
a happily married pair from the '60s, complete with a few kids in tow. When
Aniston was asked about the photos at the time, she told Vanity Fair,
"There's a sensitivity chip that's missing."
For his part, Pitt has had some not so nice things to say about his time with Aniston, too.
He told Parade back in 2011,
"[My life] started feeling pathetic. It became very clear to me that I was intent on trying to
find a movie about an interesting life, but I wasn't living an interesting life myself.
I think that my marriage [to Jennifer] had something to do with it.
Trying to pretend the marriage was something that it wasn't."
Country fans were shocked when industry powercouple Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert
announced in 2015 that they were divorcing after four years of marriage and 10 years together.
At the time, the former couple released a joint statement to the Associated Press, saying,
"It is with heavy hearts that we move forward separately."
"Have you heard any of her music? Her music is all about killin' guys…and burning their houses down."
But while neither party revealed what exactly led to the end of their marriage,
rumors about Lambert allegedly cheating on Shelton began to swirl soon after the pair were divorced.
Fast forward to April 2018, when Us Weekly reported that Lambert was dating fellow country
musician Evan Felker, who was technically still married to his wife Staci Nelson at the time.
A day after the story broke, Shelton appeared to send a message to his ex-wife, when he tweeted:
"Been taking the high road for a long time. I almost gave up, but I can finally
see something on the horizon up there??? Wait??? Could it be?! Yep!!! It's karma!!"
Shelton, of course, was soon asked about the cryptic tweet,
but he was quick to play it off. He explained to Extra,
"It was a personal thing that's in a small circle of my people and that's why it was
written the way it was. And then people took it and made it into what they want to make it into,
which I don't want any part of that." Miley Cyrus and Liam Hemsworth were
together for nearly 10 years before saying "I do" in 2018, but the couple only lasted
eight months after that. The pair, who first met while co-starring in 2010's
"The Last Song," announced their separation in August 2019. And the rocky conclusion to their
marriage featured some back-and-forth within interviews and revealing songs.
"This idea that we have to commit to something for forever… Kinda sets you up for disappointment."
Soon after the pair split, Cyrus released her single
"Slide Away," which appears to have been inspired by Hemsworth's alleged
partying, according to the lyrics. That's notable mainly because Cyrus was working
on maintaining her sobriety during the last year of their relationship.
In a 2020 interview with Howard Stern, Cyrus shed further light on the breakup.
Saying that there was a lot of tension between the two. The singer explained,
"When I come home, I want to be anchored by someone. I don't get off on drama or fighting."
That same year, Cyrus appeared on "The Joe Rogan Experience" and admitted that the marriage would
mark the final time she would ever be dependent on another person for her happiness. She claimed,
"I called the love of mine, who I was with, and we got divorced. It was almost like a pacifier.
Like, he was that thing I just needed." Kim Kardashian stood by Kanye West during
several of his headline-grabbing escapades throughout their marriage. But when the rapper
and fashion designer turned his sights on his own family, it appeared that he went too far.
West's increasingly controversial behavior made waves throughout his 2020 presidential bid. While
speaking at a political rally in South Carolina that July, he admitted that he and Kardashian
had once considered ending their pregnancy with the couple's oldest daughter North. He added,
"Even if my wife were to divorce me after this speech, she brought North into the world."
West later posted a series of now-deleted tweets calling out Kardashian and her momager,
Kris Jenner, which included calling the former a, quote, "white supremacist." Both West and
Kardashian previously confirmed that Kanye does not take medication for his bipolar disorder,
and the reality star addressed her then-husband's mental state in a series of Instagram Stories.
Asking for "compassion" from fans, she wrote,
"Those that understand mental illness or even compulsive behavior
know the family is powerless unless the member is a minor."
"I don't know why I'm crying. I've talked about this before."
West then publicly apologized to Kardashian on Twitter, writing,
"To Kim I want to say I know I hurt you. Please forgive me.
Thank you for always being there for me."
Kardashian ultimately filed for divorced in February of 2021.
In 2010, John Mayer sat down with Playboy for what will likely be considered the most
infamous interview of his career. He spoke about his perceived status as a, quote,
"douchebag," and made some seemingly ageist comments about his ex-girlfriend,
Jennifer Aniston. But one of the most shocking moments of the entire interview
came by way of Mayer's characterization of his ex-girlfriend Jessica Simpson. He said,
"That girl, for me, is a drug. And drugs aren't good for you if you do lots of them. Yeah,
that girl is like crack cocaine to me. […] It was crazy. That's all I'll say. It was like napalm."
In her 2020 memoir, "Open Book," Simpson discussed
her relationship with Mayer. Noting that it caused her severe anxiety, she wrote,
"It was the start of me relying on alcohol to mask my nerves."
"He loved me, to break up with me, to write music about it."
The duo called it quits for good following Mayer's headline-making Playboy
interview. Simpson later told Tamron Hall that she never thought she would get an
apology from Mayer — and that she's not waiting for one. She explained,
"I mean, you can't take it back. That was a time in my life where I was very manipulated
and also in love, or seemingly. But to talk about anybody [like that]
is kind of disrespectful, but that's on him." Shortly after John Mayer's 2010 interview
with Playboy, the backlash forced the singer-songwriter into a self-imposed hiatus.
It was also that same year that country-turned-pop star Taylor Swift released her third studio album,
"Speak Now," which featured a nod to her ex in the song, "Dear John."
The two musicians were rumored to have briefly dated between December 2009 and February 2010.
That was after recording "Half of My Heart" together for Mayer's 2009 album "Battle
Studies." At the time, Swift was just 19 years old, to Mayer's 32. Speaking with Rolling Stone
two years later, Mayer admitted that the "Dear John" revenge ballad left him feeling, quote,
"really humiliated." Claiming he was not contacted by Swift before the tune was released, he said,
"I didn't deserve it. I'm pretty good at taking accountability now,
and I never did anything to deserve that. It was a really lousy thing for her to do."
Mayer later released a rumored "Dear John" response song called "Paper Doll."
Selena Gomez and Justin Bieber were at one point the most famous couple in the world.
So when the pair eventually began a cycle of breaking up and making up,
it wasn't well received by fans. The couple got together in 2010
and kicked off their on-again, off-again cycle in 2012, calling it quits yet again in 2015.
By 2016, Bieber was romantically involved with legendary musician
Lionel Richie's daughter, Sofia Richie. Of course Bieber shared snaps of himself
and the model on vacation. But that resulted in so many negative comments from Instagram users,
Beebz had to step in and defend his then-girlfriend. He posted,
"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."
For her part, Gomez didn't appear to take kindly to her ex speaking down to his fans.
She responded to his 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."
As for Bieber and Gomez, they reconciled once again in 2017, before breaking up
for good in 2018. Bieber quickly went on to marry model Hailey Baldwin that November,
which appeared to inspire Gomez to release her 2019 single, "Lose You to Love Me."
"I love deeply and I think that's just who I am, so, not really ashamed."
Comedian Pete Davidson and pop star Ariana Grande
had one of the most famous whirlwind relationships in celebrity history.
Just weeks after the pair confirmed they were dating in May 2018, they got engaged.
"She's the number one pop star in the world, and I'm that guy from 'SNL' that
everyone thinks is in desperate need of more blood."
But their breakup went down just five months later.
And in the wake of their parting, they both had some choice words to say about the other.
Grande's hit single, "Thank U, Next," was released that November and featured the singer
saying she was, in fact, thankful for her former fiancé. And the following year, she told Vogue,
"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. I'm like an infant when it comes to real life and this old soul,
been-around-the-block-a-million-times artist. I still don't trust myself with the life stuff."
While Grande's comments about the former couple's romance weren't completely negative,
Davidson didn't take kindly to his ex characterizing their time together as
"frivolous and fun." On his 2020 Netflix special,
"Pete Davidson: Alive From New York," the actor directly referenced the Vogue interview, saying,
"Can you imagine if I did that? My career would be over tomorrow. If I spray-painted
myself brown and hopped on the cover of 'Vogue' magazine and just starting s---ting on my ex."
After months of rumors, One Direction's Zayn Malik and Little Mix's Perrie Edwards' relationship was
confirmed when photos of the pair were published by the Daily Mail, in 2012. Malik solidified
their relationship the following year with a tattoo and a proposal. But the couple called it
quits in 2015 — around the same time that Malik left One Direction, to strike out on his own.
In a 2016 interview with Billboard, Malik was asked what he typically
looked for in a relationship. And his response was interpreted by many as a diss to his ex. He said,
"I need a challenge. Also, I like girls that are a bit chunky in certain areas — the nice
areas. I like a fuller woman. I enjoy an intellectual conversation as well,
where someone can construct a sentence beyond what hair and makeup they're wearing,
and talk about something political or about the world. I like an opinion."
"I need time to prepare myself."
Edwards seemingly responded to Malik's remarks and his then-rumored relationship with Gigi Hadid in
Little Mix's 2016 song, "Shout Out To My Ex." On the track, she sings about someone she was with
for four years, revealing that she may have been possibly faking it with Malik in the bedroom.
Broken hearts have been the fuel for some of the greatest artistic works of all time.
And Sam Smith's relationship with their model-dancer boyfriend Jonathan Zeizel
inspired the British hitmaker to create songs that resulted in a trophy case full of awards…
So much better than getting an old sweater back after calling it quits, right?
During a 2015 concert in Toronto, Smith hinted that things with Zeizel were over. And reportedly,
Smith's debut album, "In the Lonely Hour," was inspired by a former heartbreak.
In reference to the track "Good Thing," the singer shared with the crowd,
"I decided to write this song, and, the day before I wrote this song,
I basically went on my phone, and I deleted their number
and I deleted everything. The reason why this song is very special for me today,
is that I've actually had to do a very similar thing today with someone I've been seeing."
"It's almost like I'm so honest, that everyone knows everything about me now."
Less than one month later, Smith was cleaning up at the Grammys,
taking home four awards, including record of the year for "Stay With Me." Smith seemed to
again reference the split with Zeizel, with a laugh and a quick mention on the winner's mic,
"I want to thank the man who this record is about, who I fell in love with
last year. Thank you so much for breaking my heart, 'cause you got me four Grammys."
In 2016, "Gifted" co-stars Chris Evans and Jenny Slate were confirmed to be dating.
It was a relationship fans could get behind, with the Marvel action star getting some
hipster cred from the multi-talented Slate. While the pair split less than a year later,
reconciled, and then called it quits again in 2018, they have continued to inspire fans
with lovely quotes about each other. In March of 2017, Slate explained that dating Captain
America came with a level of celebrity she had yet to experience. And while the pair weren't
close friends following their breakup, she hoped to reconnect someday. She told Vulture,
"Chris is truly one of the kindest people I've ever met,
to the point where sometimes I would look at him and it would kind of break my heart.
He's really vulnerable, and he's really straightforward.
He's like primary colors. He has beautiful, big, strong emotions, and he's really sure of them.
It's just wonderful to be around. His heart is probably golden-colored, if you could paint it."
A few days later, Evans called Slate his, quote, "favorite human," telling People magazine,
"She's so vulnerable, so honest, so interested in other people more than herself,
she's incredibly compassionate, there's just nothing to not love about her."
Jennifer Garner and Ben Affleck ended their 10-year marriage in 2015 — with
their divorce becoming finalized three years later. But as the parents of three kids,
the pair have continued to work together and support each other as family and friends.
Only months after their split was publicized,
Garner revealed that even with the pain of their breakup still feeling fresh,
she has no regrets. Recalling their private 2005 wedding, Garner told Vanity Fair,
"I would go back and remake that decision. I ran down the beach to him, and I would again.
You can't have these three babies and so much of what we had [without that]. […] He's the
most brilliant person in any room, the most charismatic,
the most generous. He's just a complicated guy. I always say, 'When his sun shines on you, you
feel it.' But when the sun is shining elsewhere, it's cold. He can cast quite a shadow."
"I've made plenty of mistakes, some big, some small."
Affleck has received support from Garner when it comes to maintaining his sobriety.
And he revealed to The New York Times in 2020 that the pair's divorce was the, quote,
"biggest regret of my life."
The start of the 2020 pandemic led millions of people to reexamine their lives — and that
included Demi Lovato. The pop star jumped into a whirlwind relationship with actor Max Ehrich,
which featured an engagement by July 2020 after only four months of dating,
and then a breakup that September, almost as fast as it started.
Skipping ahead to May 2021,
Lovato was making a splash yet again, coming out via Twitter as nonbinary. Lovato posted,
"I feel that this best represents the fluidity I feel in my gender expression, and allows me
to feel most authentic and true to the person I both know I am and still am discovering."
In August, the singer-actor spoke during "The 19th Represents" 2021 Virtual Summit,
and explained that things with Ehrich ultimately
became the catalyst for a kind of identity rebirth. Lovato shared with the audience,
"I met someone and I got into this straight relationship, and that was great,
but that led me to ignoring all the parts of myself that I didn't think were digestible for
my partner at the time. […] In hindsight, the dissolvement of that relationship was actually
probably the best thing that's happened to me. […] When I said goodbye to that relationship,
I also said goodbye to everything that was holding me back from being my most authentic self."
If you or anyone you know is struggling with addiction issues,
help is available. Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
website or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).