The Most Surprising Things Celebs Have Said About Their Exes

The following article includes mentions of mental illness and drug and alcohol addiction.

Breakups are painful for everyone, but there's an added level of pressure when living in the public eye. It's much more difficult to ignore that your ex has moved on with a supermodel when pictures of them are on the front of magazines or when you bump into them backstage at a high-profile event. Potentially awkward run-ins aside, celebrity breakups also mean you'll likely be asked about your time together — in print, no less — for years on end.

Of course, there are also those famous faces who use heartache as fuel for their artistic endeavors or their next big project. (Jukeboxes would basically be half empty if not for all the heartbreak songs.) But while some celebrity relationships tend to be whirlwind romances or end in a brutal, heartbreaking manner — with both scenarios fit for tabloid fodder — thankfully, not all Tinseltown splits lead to public mudslinging. There are several former Hollywood couples, especially those who share children, who prove that breakups can be handled maturely in the spotlight. Sure, you can complain about your ex privately to friends, but keep it classy for the kids when chatting with the press.

From the harsh to the heartfelt, these are the most surprising things celebs have said about their exes.

Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt may now be on friendly terms years after the A-listers' 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, including during a 2020 fundraiser table read for "Fast Times At Ridgemont High" and at the SAG Awards that same year. In 2021, Aniston told Howard Stern that she and her ex-husband are "buddies" (via CNN), but the "Friends" alum likely wasn't using such a descriptor 15 years earlier.

Shortly after the couple separated, Pitt famously posed with then-rumored girlfriend (and future ex-wife) Angelina Jolie in a W magazine spread that cast the two as a happily married pair from the 1960s. Aniston was asked about the photos while being interviewed by Vanity Fair that same year. "There's a sensitivity chip that's missing," she said.

For his part, Pitt had some not so nice things to say about his time with Aniston during a 2011 interview with Parade. "It started feeling pathetic," the actor said of his life in the late 1990s and early 2000s. "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 actress Jennifer Aniston] had something to do with it. Trying to pretend the marriage was something that it wasn't."

Miley Cyrus and Liam Hemsworth were together for nearly 10 years before deciding to say "I do," but the couple only lasted eight months after walking down the aisle in December 2018. The pair, who first met while co-starring in the 2010 Nicholas Sparks film, "The Last Song," announced their separation in August 2019, per People — and went on to have a rocky conclusion to their marriage that included some back-and-forth in interviews and song lyrics.

Soon after the pair split, Cyrus released her single, "Slide Away," which appears to have been inspired by Hemsworth's alleged partying. "Don't want the whiskey and pills / I don't give up easily / But I don't think I'm down / So won't you slide away?" Cyrus, who was working on her sobriety form drugs and alcohol in the last year of their relationship, sings in the pre-chorus and chorus (via Genius). 

In a 2020 interview with Howard Stern, Cyrus shed further light on the breakup. Saying that her marriage with Hemsworth ended because there was "too much conflict" between the pair, Cyrus explained (via E!), "When I come home, I want to be anchored by someone. I don't get off on drama or fighting." That same year, the singer-actor appeared on "The Joe Rogan Experience" podcast and admitted that their marriage would mark the final time she was dependent on another person for her happiness: "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."

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).

In 2010, John Mayer sat down with Playboy and delivered what will likely be considered the most infamous interview of his career. The musician spoke about his perceived status as a "douchebag," having a "hood pass," labelled his manhood as "sort of like a white supremacist," and made some seemingly ageist comments about ex-girlfriend Jennifer Aniston. But one of the most shocking moments of the interview came by way of Mayer's characterization of ex-girlfriend Jessica Simpson.

"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," said Mayer in reference to their on-and-off relationship, which began in 2006. "Sexually it was crazy. That's all I'll say. It was like napalm, sexual napalm."

In her 2020 memoir, "Open Book," Simpson discussed her relationship with Mayer. Noting that it caused her severe anxiety, she wrote (via Vulture), "It was the start of me relying on alcohol to mask my nerves." The duo called it quits for good following Mayer's headline-making Playboy interview, with Simpson revealing, "When he reached out to me, I changed my number and changed my email. Delete." While promoting the book, the singer-actor told Tamron Hall that she didn't "expect" to receive an apology from Mayer. "I mean, you can't take it back," Simpson explained, adding, "That was a time in my life where I was very manipulated and ... also in love, or seemingly. ... But to talk about anybody sexually is kind of disrespectful, but that's on him."

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).

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 who were endgame for Jelena. Bieber and Gomez began dating in 2010 and kicked off their on-again, off-again cycle in 2012, with the couple calling it quits yet again in 2015, per People.

By 2016, Bieber was romantically involved with Sofia Richie, daughter of musician Lionel Richie. In a series of posts that have since been deleted, Bieber shared pictures of himself and the model on vacation in Tokyo. The images resulted in many fans posting negative comments, forcing JBiebs to step in and defend his then-girlfriend, writing (via Elle), "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 and stepped in on behalf of Beliebers: "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 Jelena, they reconciled once again in 2017, before breaking up for good in 2018. Bieber married Hailey Baldwin shortly after that November, which seemingly inspired Gomez's 2019 single, "Lose You to Love Me."

Comedian Pete Davidson and pop star Ariana Grande had one of the most whirlwind relationships in celebrity history. Only weeks after the pair confirmed they were dating in May 2018, an engagement announcement followed. But their breakup came five months later, per People, and in the wake of their parting, 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 speaking highly of her former fiancé (via Genius): "Even almost got married / And for Pete, I'm so thankful." The following year, she opened to Vogue about the pair's short-lived relationship. "I met Pete, and it was an amazing distraction," Grande said. "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 did not take kindly to his ex characterizing their time together as "frivolous and fun." During his 2020 Netflix special, "Pete Davidson: Alive From New York," Davidson directly referenced the Vogue interview and Grande's cover spread with the magazine. "Can you imagine if I did that?" asked Davidson (via BuzzFeed). "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."

Broken hearts have been the fuel for some of the greatest artistic works of all time. For Sam Smith, their relationship with model boyfriend Jonathan Zeizel inspired the British hitmaker to create songs that resulted in a trophy case full of awards — and that's much better than getting back an old sweater after calling it quits.

During a January 2015 concert held at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Smith hinted that they and Zeizel had ended their romantic relationship. Speaking about their ex, Smith said their debut album, "In the Lonely Hour," was inspired by a former heartbreak. "But 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," Smith told the crowd (via Us Weekly) in reference to their song, "Good Thing." They added, "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."

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 their breakup with Zeizel in their acceptance speech and found the silver lining in heartbreak: "Just a quick one. 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," Smith said with a laugh.

Jennifer Garner and Ben Affleck may have ended their 10-year marriage in 2015 (their divorce was finalized in 2018), but as parents to three children, the pair have continued to work together as a team and support each other as co-parents and friends.

Only months after the former couple's separation was publicized, Garner spoke to Vanity Fair in February 2016 and said that, even with the pain of their breakup still fresh, she would continue to choose Affleck as her husband. Speaking about their private 2005 beach wedding, Garner said, "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." The "Alias" star went on to call Affleck the "love of [her] life," saying, "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."

As for Affleck, the actor has received help from his ex when it comes to maintaining his sobriety and told The New York Times in 2020 that the pair's divorce was "biggest regret of [his] life."

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).