"They" say that variety is the spice of life, but "they" also say that opposites attract.
There's no explaining why some people fall head over heels, but love may seem especially
inexplicable when someone pairs up with another person who's unlike them in at least one obvious
way.
Love is mysterious and unpredictable, and here are some of the most surprising Hollywood
relationships cupid has ever produced.
Ryan Gosling and Sandra Bullock
It seems hard to believe now, but Ryan Gosling wasn't always one of the most desired men
on the planet.
He was once arguably more well known for his relationships than he was for his Academy
Award nominations, though he did meet a number of his romantic partners on set.
He's now happily attached to Eva Mendes, his co-star in The Place Beyond The Pines.
Before that he matched up with Rachel McAdams, who played his love interest in The Notebook.
But before that, people tend to forget that at one magical point in time, Sandra Bullock
and Gosling were an item.
The two met while filming the 2002 thriller Murder by Numbers and dated for about a year.
The relationship was pretty much doomed from the get-go.
Gosling was just 22, but he remembers the relationship fondly.
Reflecting on his relationships with Bullock and McAdams in a 2011 interview with The Times,
Gosling said,
"I had two of the greatest girlfriends of all time.
I haven't met anybody who could top them."
But then he totally did.
“I’m happier than I’ve ever been.”
Britney Spears and Colin Farrell
Before motherhood and a Las Vegas residency led to a much quieter personal life, Britney
Spears' song "Oops!
I Did it Again" could have referred to her perplexing choices in guys, with the exception
of fellow TRL mainstay Justin Timberlake.
She dated edgy magician Criss Angel and, of course, Kevin Federline.
But then there was the moment when Spears very briefly snuggled up to then-notorious
Hollywood bad boy Colin Farrell in 2003.
Their brief fling was captured for posterity at the premiere of Farrell's film, The Recruit,
where he showed up with his arm wrapped around the singer.
Farrell denied he was in a relationship with Spears, declaring,
"[I'm] just a 26-year-old guy who's single and having a good time."
Taylor Swift and Jake Gyllenhaal
Taylor Swift is almost more famous for the celebrity dudes she's dated than she is for
the many, many songs she's written about the celebrity dudes she's dated.
Over the years, Swift’s been paired with the likes of Joe Jonas, Taylor Lautner, John
Mayer, Harry Styles, and Tom Hiddleston.
Arguably the biggest head-scratcher of a relationship was when the fun-loving country-turned-pop
singer dated serious actor Jake Gyllenhaal in 2010, when she was only 20 years old, and
he was 30.
The relationship lasted just a few months, but in true Taylor Swift fashion, that was
allegedly more than enough time for her to pen the song "All Too Well," which is allegedly
about Jake.
Swift fans even have tracked down Jake’s sister, Maggie, to verify details about a
scarf mentioned in the lyrics…
“I left your scarf at your sister’s place.”
“Huh.
I am in the dark about the scarf.
It’s totally possible.”
RuPaul and Georges LeBar
A singer, actor, talk show host, and Emmy-winning reality show personality, RuPaul Charles is
the very personification of glitz, glamor, and Hollywood.
We'd expect him to have found an equally spotlight-loving other half, but that's not the case.
In March 2017, RuPaul revealed to Hollywood Today Live that he married his longtime partner,
Australian painter Georges LeBar, two months prior, exactly 23 years after they met at
a New York nightclub.
“He’s my favorite person on the planet I’ve met.”
RuPaul says LeBar, quote "doesn't care about show business at all."
He just doesn't have the time, what with running a 60,000-acre ranch that straddles South Dakota
and Wyoming, which may be about the most un-Hollywood place in the United States.
Gwen Stefani and Blake Shelton
Gwen Stefani: fashion icon, proud California girl, and lead singer of No Doubt.
Blake Shelton: country singer, native Oklahoman, and probably best known to non-country fans
as the guy who loves to give pop star Adam Levine a hard time.
What do Shelton and Stefani have in common?
Talent.
Or rather, a talent show.
The couple met on NBC's The Voice, where both were judges.
When Stefani returned to the set of The Voice in July 2015, she was quietly divorcing Bush
frontman Gavin Rossdale.
Soon after, Shelton announced that he was divorcing his country superstar wife, Miranda
Lambert.
Commiserating over that commonality, Stefani and Shelton struck up a close friendship.
They wound up writing a song together called "Go Ahead and Break My Heart," which helped
do quite the opposite, healing the singers' hearts enough for them to fall for each other.
“Does he give you that simple kind of life?”
“He does.
He’s inspired me so much.
He’s changed my life.”
Lovely!
Julia Roberts and Lyle Lovett
Who were the most mismatched Hollywood couple of all time?
One might argue that it was actress Julia Roberts and country crooner Lyle Lovett.
The couple met after filming scenes for Robert Altman's 1992 Hollywood satire The Player,
then rushed to say "I do" in the summer of 1993.
“I’m also just a girl.
Standing in front of a boy.
Asking him to love her.”
Except she was just a 25-year-old girl and the biggest leading lady in the world, standing
in front of a boy who was pushing 40 and an acclaimed singer-songwriter who was mostly
recognized for his crazy hair.
Which is to say...Lovett wasn't the kind of matinee idol with whom Roberts was usually
linked, guys like Jason Patric or Kiefer Sutherland.
Tabloids followed Roberts and Lovett's every move until their split in 1995.