Once upon a time there lived a notoriously private Hollywood couple
until their break-up was announced by an 11-year-old.
Even though Salma Hayek and Edward Norton tried to keep their relationship as low-key as possible,
tabloids' interest in their lives was too intense for the two to make it possible.
Why did the lovebirds call it quits after 4 years of dating?
What exactly did Hayek mean saying after their split that she needs to find a man with, quote,
"more balls" than her? And what the hell does the 11-year-old have to do with the whole thing?
Stay with Rumour Juice to find the answers to these questions.
Probably some of you didn't even know Norton and Hayek were once together.
During the 90s, both actors were gradually becoming Hollywood favourites. By the end of
the decade, Salma had broken through via the film From Dusk Till Dawn and Edward was at the peak of
his career after starring in American History X and Fight Club. And this is exactly when they met.
Not at some fashionable party or at a red carpet event, and not even while starring in the same
movie. Salma and Edward were actually introduced to each other by their chiropractor in 1999.
Already by 2000 they were a red carpet standby — premieres, awards shows, sporting events.
On the one hand, their romance was highly public, at least it felt like that. On the other hand,
no one actually knew anything about the real thing. Salma said in one of the interviews:
"We did thousands of things and nobody knows. Most of what is written about me isn't true.
I would get more angry if I picked up the paper and thought "Oh My God, how did they find out?"
No, it's almost like I have a parallel life that no one knows about".
Both refused to exploit their personal life for the sake of publicity,
it was their choice. But one unexpected situation caused a lot of talking. This happened when Norton
and Hayek starred together in the 2002 biopic about Frida Kahlo. Hayek starred in the titular
role and served as a producer; Norton had a small role on screen but a large role off.
Detailing her harrowing experience, Hayek revealed in 2017 that she had been nearly removed from the
project after she refused sexual advances of the infamous Harvey Weinstein. To clear
himself of legal obligation, he posed a number of impossible requirements, including a rewrite of
the script (charge-free of course) and a casting of 4 prominent actors in the supporting roles.
That's when Edward stepped in. He rewrote the script several times and never got
credit. Edward also agreed to play the role of Nelson Rockefeller. Hayek called Norton
one of her "phalanx of angels" who made it possible for her to deliver the project.
In 2003, all of a sudden Salma and Edward split. The two stars evidently didn't plan
to talk to the press about it, but one 11-year-old was not aware of this plan.
Daryl Sabara, who co-starred with Hayek in Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over,
let the secret out during an NBC interview saying "She [Salma] isn't with Ed Norton anymore".
Neither of the stars has commented on the break-up which seemed truly amicable.
However, shortly after the break-up Salma said in an interview that she was looking for a man with
"more balls" than her. Did that mean that Norton having rewritten the script was not
enough of a bald move for Hayek? Or was there something else she was referring to? Or probably
that phrase had nothing to do with her ex at all but just meant Salma herself had changed a lot.
And again, years later, Hayek somewhat alluded to Norton
when talking about her romances after marrying her perfect man.
"I wish I knew [when I was younger] that I was going to fall crazy in love with the perfect man.
I was so worried, and I dated some people I shouldn't have dated. You get desperate, and
you start seeing wonderful things in, like, the wrong guys. I also found some pretty good guys."
We just hope that Ed was a pretty good guy and not the one she shouldn't have dated.
Now Salma is happily married to a French businessman, François-Henri Pinault . Ed
even attended their wedding in 2009. Hayek and Pinault have been together for over
15 years. From the very start of this relationship
some malicious tongues have been saying she married the rich man for money.
Luckily, Salma doesn't give a damn about what haters say. The actress doesn't even get offended.
"There is discrimination also against rich men. Immediately you think because somebody's rich,
[they] might not be a good person, might be somebody materialistic,
might be somebody that doesn't have values, might be somebody that is even stupid or that
doesn't deserve it [or] that in order to have a lot of money, you did it the wrong way".
While Hayek sometimes talks about her love life, when asked about it,
Norton remains cagey about discussing his family life.
He has been married since 2012 and we barely know anything about his private life. To the extent
that Ed even declined to issue a statement confirming his son's birth in March 2013.
Still, at one point he gave a glimpse at his priorities explaining that he
intentionally slowed down to focus on family. This man definitely wants to build his perfect
model of work-life balance, therefore he became more choosy about the roles.
In addition to that, the actor feels like he has matured to choose the roles wisely.
"I've... gotten more willing to wait for things that feel really strong as an attempt
to make an original piece, or are expressing something that is really unique, or [are from]
a film-maker that I really admire like Wes Anderson, or Alejandro Inarritu or Spike Lee."
Interestingly, neither Hayek, nor Norton seem to have been involved in many relationships.
At least not that we know of. There are many cases of celebrities of their level of
popularity and hotness that change partners like gloves. But these two, who are often perceived
and portrayed as passionate and hot-tempered people, appear to be the fans of quiet life.
Even if we recall Norton's relationship with Courteney Love, who has the reputation of being
quite a character, there was not any drama between the two. They dated on and off for around 3 years
and some called their romance an unlikely match. Likely or not, they even got engaged.
According to Love, Norton served as a "force of good" in her life.
He helped Love with her depression after her Cobain's death in 1994
In 2003, Love told Vanity Fair: "I love Edward so much.
It’s not in anybody’s history book that we dated because he managed to scare the vultures off."
When asked years later in an Instagram story if she's had any good boyfriends after Cobain,
she replied with a photo of Norton with the caption "Here's one."
You might wonder why they got engaged but never married. Apparently it was Love's decision.
The rock icon explained later on she was not ready for marriage.
"I left him for a bad man who stole all my money. I left Ed Norton,
who was good and wonderful, for an average bad man who was in A+R. It’s upsetting".
We can only hope that Courtney will find her Love,
pun intended. We are happy for both Salma and Edward who have already succeeded in it.
That's all for today, dear Rumour Juice people. As always, you are very much awaited in the
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