Strange Things About Robert Pattinson And Suki Waterhouse's Relationship
Robert Pattinson's dating history includes plenty of headline-making romances — remember his engagement to FKA Twigs? — but so does Suki Waterhouse's. The model, singer, and "Daisy Jones & the Six" star has been linked to the likes of Bradley Cooper and Diego Luna. However, neither actors' high-profile matches ultimately worked out — until they met each other.
Pattinson and Waterhouse's low-key relationship began sometime in 2018 and since then, they've rarely talked about their union, which, of course, has only spurred fans' interest. Explaining why they've been so secretive, Pattinson told The Times in 2019, "If you let people in, it devalues what love is." And they've stuck to it. The pair didn't make their red carpet debut until 2022 (that's four years into their relationship!), and they're still hesitant to speak about each other in the press.
However, that's not the only quirk in their relationship. When they decided to tell the world they were expecting their first baby in November 2023, Waterhouse did so while on stage. While performing at the Corona Capital music festival in Mexico City, Mexico, she showed off her baby bump and joked, "I decided to wear something particularly sparkly today because I thought it might distract you from something else that's going on!" And there's more where that came from. Here are all the strange things about Pattinson and Waterhouse's relationship.
Suki Waterhouse took a vow of celibacy before meeting Robert Pattinson
Suki Waterhouse is talented, successful, and, of course, beautiful, but she too has struggled with dating. In fact, things got particularly bad right before she met Robert Pattinson, as the relationship she had been in ended terribly.
"I've been ghosted and broken up with after dating someone for a year," she told the "Driven Minds: A Type 7 Podcast" in October 2023. Being left in such a cold-hearted way shook up her world, but luckily, it proved to be a positive learning experience. Following her heartbreak, the actor decided to swear off men for six months. "It turned out to be brilliant because I took a bout of celibacy," she shared. "No dates, no nothing."
During that time, she learned more about herself than she ever had. As she told the podcast, by not having to flirt, text potential matches, and deal with all the emotions that come with courting, she was able to put the focus back on herself. "You actually can hear yourself so much clearer," Waterhouse mused. "I got very clear and I got very used to being comfortable with myself — then I ended up meeting my boyfriend now." She recalled how the cosmic irony of the two connecting during this time in her life made her relationship with Pattinson "extra special in a way."
Waterhouse is 'shocked' they've lasted this long
Robert Pattinson and Suki Waterhouse were first linked in July 2018, after the "Twilight" star had previously ended things with fiancée FKA Twigs in October 2017. It started out casually enough, with a source telling E!, "Rob is having fun right now," but both actors were soon surprised by their special bond.
This was especially the case for Waterhouse, who told The Times in February 2023, "I'm shocked that I'm so happy with someone for nearly five years." Opening up about what has made their union work, she revealed they've never spent more than two months apart, plus they love talking to each other. "I'm always incredibly excited when I see his name pop up [on my phone] or even a text, and I think he feels the same about me," she enthused. "We've always got so much to say, and I find him hilarious."
Meanwhile, during her appearance on the "Driven Minds: A Type 7 Podcast," the singer added that mutual support has also been key. "The one thing that I really cherish in relationships is when somebody's just completely understanding of, like, 'Oh, you have to go and work' ... When you're both comfortable in being able to leave." Offering quite the unique analogy, she shared, "It's like, you go and have to slay your dragon, and go around the world, and into the wild, and when that home center is secure, that's the most wonderful thing."
Things got chaotic when they moved in together
It took five years of dating to spur Robert Pattinson and Suki Waterhouse to move in together. As Architectural Digest reported in February 2023, the couple bought a home in the Hollywood Hills built in 1939 for a cool $5.3 million. Waterhouse shared on the "Driven Minds: A Type 7 Podcast" that October that this was her first time living with someone and it took some major adjusting. "I just went past my house last night, my old apartment, which I spent eight years in, and I suddenly was getting, like, the heartburn for that street ... I was like, 'I can't believe I'm not there anymore and now I have to consider someone else,'" she mused.
For his part, Pattinson also had to make some adjustments. "I am an incredibly messy human," Waterhouse admitted. What's more, for the first six months, she actually didn't unpack. "I wasn't there for the move, so everything just got boxed up and sent," she explained. It stayed like that until October when she finally couldn't handle it anymore. "It's gotten so bad that I had a professional cleaner come in yesterday," she told the podcast.
Thankfully, her partner just went with the flow. "I'm very lucky because he is so accepting of the mess and the chaos," the singer revealed. "He never says anything about it. He kind of thinks it's, like, charming."
Pattinson wasn't sure about The Batman — until Waterhouse approved
Playing Batman comes with a lot of pressure. Not surprisingly, Robert Pattinson worried about his own take on the dark superhero, telling "Jimmy Kimmel Live" in 2022 that he desperately didn't want to fail. "I was absolutely terrified," he said of "The Batman." "I haven't been this scared to release a movie in such a long time."
Pattinson was so worried, in fact, that he hesitated to watch the film in full once it was finished. Finally, he did so with girlfriend Suki Waterhouse by his side. "It was really her reaction that kind of changed the entire thing," he explained to Kimmel. "I'm pretty sure she's not normally into watching kind of superhero movies and just seeing that it was capturing her attention the entire time," he added. "Then she held my hand and just touched it [to her face] and I could feel a little tear and I was like, 'No way!'"
That being said, the singer also trolled her partner over the film. As Pattinson told GQ, they had a handyman over who admitted to being a huge DC fan. That's when Waterhouse swooped in. "My girlfriend just keeps continuing the conversation with him," he recalled. "I'm looking at her like, 'Shut the f*** up! Why are you doing this to me?'"
Waterhouse was publicly shamed for their relationship
Scrutiny is, unfortunately, something all stars in Hollywood have to contend with. However, the criticism Suki Waterhouse faced over her relationship with Robert Pattinson went far beyond what we've grown to expect from the usual haters.
In July 2021, the actor and her personal life were called out on the third episode of HBO Max's "Gossip Girl" reboot, and not in a flattering way. As Glamour reported, the scene in question featured the mean girl character scornfully telling another character, "As far as the press is concerned, he's R-Patz and you're Suki nobody."
Not surprisingly, Waterhouse took offense and openly clapped back at the show. In a since-deleted tweet, she tagged the show's creator, Lila Feinberg, and slammed, "Another day to be reminded that women can also be the patriarchy." She also shared a still image of another scene from the same episode in which two characters proudly proclaimed, "F*** the patriarchy." In the accompanying tweet, she mused, "Seeing critiques of the patriarchy and sexism, then I get name checked as somebody's 'nobody' girlfriend. Make it make sense!"
The couple loves to lie
While Robert Pattinson and Suki Waterhouse may be totally honest with one another, they both enjoy lying to the media — and they're really good at it. So much so that it can be difficult to tell when they're not being honest.
Waterhouse, for example, told Us Weekly in 2015 that she liked to rinse her hair with soda and convincingly proclaimed, "Coca-Cola makes it tousled, like I've gone through the Amazon or something." It wasn't until 2022 that she confessed to a fan she had never actually done so. "I have to be honest, I got bored doing hair interviews and said this," she tweeted.
Pattinson was just as believable when he told "Today" (via The Cut) in 2011 that he had witnessed the death of a circus clown. The actor was promoting "Water for Elephants" (in which he plays a student who joins a circus) when he claimed his sole experience at a circus was a dramatic one. "His little car exploded," Pattinson said without missing a beat. A week later, though, he admitted to a reporter, "I actually made the whole thing up." Why? Because he felt he had nothing interesting to say. We wonder if the couple has to coordinate their little white lies ...