Both Britney Spears and John Stamos revealed secret hookups in their respective memoirs — but there are plenty more celebrity clandestine romances that fans only learned about years later
For celebrities, dating in the public eye is no easy task and keeping things a secret is even more challenging!
But somehow, some famous couples are able to completely fly under the radar with no one ever finding out about their romance. Fans don’t end up learning about these celebrity hookups for years — and only get the tea thanks to some very telling interviews or memoirs. While many of these flings have been over for decades, it still makes headlines and leaves some fans totally shocked.
Read on to find out which celebs secretly hooked up…
1. Britney Spears & Colin Farrell
In Britney Spears’ new memoir The Woman In Me, she revealed that she had a fling with Colin Farrell shortly after her split from Justin Timberlake. She called their intense hookups a “two-week brawl” and while she thought “there could be something there,” their romance eventually ended.
“We were all over each other, grappling so passionately it was like we were in a street fight,” she wrote, adding, “As I had before when I’d felt too attached to a man, I tried to convince myself in every way that it was not a big deal, that we were just having fun, that in this case I was vulnerable because I wasn’t over Justin yet.”
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2. John Stamos & Demi Moore
John Stamos recently revealed in his memoir, If You Would Have Told Me, that he hooked up with his General Hospital co-star Demi Moore. In the book, John shared that he had recently reunited with Demi while celebrating Jamie Lee Curtis’ Academy Award nomination for her work in Everything Everywhere All at Once. At the party, they bumped into a writer friend who recalled their roles as Blackie and Jackie — and asked if they had ever gotten romantic.
“We both look at each other, wondering what the other will say. Demi pauses to think about it. ‘I don’t know if we slept together. I think we fooled around though.’ I just smile. Then ask if she remembers back in the day when we all went to see Rick Springfield at the Universal Amphitheater,” John wrote.
3. John Stamos & Carrie Ann Inaba
John Stamos also hooked up with Carrie Ann Inaba in the early 1990s. Carrie Ann revealed the details years later, sharing that they had a fling while she was a dancer on In Living Color.
“We did date. When I was a Fly Girl, the dreamiest thing happened. Somebody was like, ‘Somebody wants to meet you across the room.’ The room parted and on the other side of the room was John Stamos,” Carrie Ann shared on The Talk.
The pair ended up dating for “a little while” but ultimately split because she “was not quite ready for somebody as good as John Stamos in my life at that moment.” While the pair tried to later reconcile, it didn’t end up working out — but they’re still on good terms.
4. Matthew Perry & Julia Roberts
Matthew Perry and Julia Roberts actually dated in the mid-90s, a reveal that the actor made in his memoir Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing. Looking back, Matthew explained that it all started when Julia was asked to appear in a season 2 episode of Friends. Julia agreed to guest star — but only if she was included in Matthew’s storyline.
Matthew knew he had to woo her, so he sent her three dozen roses and a note expressing how much he wanted her to be on the show. In response, Julia said that if he “adequately explained quantum physics to her, she’d agree to be on the show.” The next day, he sent her a “paper all about wave-particle duality and the uncertainty principle and entanglement, and only some of it was metaphorical.”
By the time they filmed the show, the pair were already dating — but it unfortunately didn’t last long. Matthew says dating Julia was “too much” for him and he was “constantly certain that she was going to break up” with him. He said that he felt that he was “not enough” as he was “broken, bent [and] unlovable.” Instead of facing the “inevitable agony of losing her,” he ended up breaking up with her.
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5. Carrie Fisher & Harrison Ford
Carrie Fisher kept her relationship with Harrison Ford a secret for 40 years. In her memoir, The Princess Diarist, Carrie finally revealed that the pair had a three-month fling when she was 19 and Harrison was 33. At the time of the “intense” affair, Harrison was married with two children.
“It was so intense. It was Han and Leia during the week, and Carrie and Harrison during the weekend,” Carrie told People, adding that the romance took her by surprise.
Looking back Carrie says she was “so inexperienced” but “trusted” him, despite often being wracked by self-doubt. While she has fond memories of their time together, she eventually ended things and they never spoke of it again.
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6. Jewel & Sean Penn
Back in the ’90s, Jewel says she dated Sean Penn while he was on a break from his future-wife Robin Wright. In her memoir, Never Broken, Jewel wrote that Sean contacted her after watching her perform on Conan O’Brien’s show in 1995. He initially asked her to compose a song for his film The Crossing Guard and the pair grew closer, with things eventually turning romantic.
“We spoke on the phone a lot and he was a fantastic flirt and I did not mind one bit. But I intended to give him no such conquest. I put that man through his paces and he took it in stride. He began to court me in earnest, following me around on tour, acting as my de facto roadie,” she wrote. “I moved very slowly with him but he was a persistent and inventive suitor, and I enjoyed it immensely.”
Jewel says the pair eventually fell in love but kept things on the DL because Jewel didn’t want her romantic life to impact her career. Eventually the relationship fizzled out for the couple and Sean rekindled things with Robin.
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7. Mariah Carey & Derek Jeter
In Mariah Carey’s book, The Meaning of Mariah Carey, she opened up about her short romance with Derek Jeter. She revealed that the pair met at an Armani party in the late ’90s while her marriage to Tommy Mottola was falling apart. They began texting and eventually met up for a date, where they shared a kiss that inspired Mariah’s song, “The Roof.”
Mariah says the secret rendezvous proved that she could “have something beautiful on the other side of the hell that was [her] marriage.” When she filed for divorce, she finally began a romantic relationship with Derek. While the relationship was “the catalyst” she needed “to get out from under Tommy’s gripping control and in touch” with her sensuality, it ultimately didn’t last.
“Very soon it became clear we weren’t meant for the long run,” she wrote, adding it was “hard for two stars” to make it work and describing a big difference between athletes and performers like herself. She also said it was simply hard to “live up to each other’s fantasies” but looking back, she says he was in her life for “the right purpose.”
8. Miley Cyrus & Tyler Posey
When Tyler Posey was just a young actor appearing on Billy Ray Cyrus’ medical drama “Doc,” he met a seven-year-old Miley Cyrus. The pair ended up having an innocent childhood relationship and even shared their first kiss! Tyler opened up about the romance years later, sharing that their relationship was very special to him.
“I was basically the only kid on set. She would come on set every now and then and we became really good friends. We were both goofy and she was really loud, sweet, and funny — just a really cool kid … We were so damn young … I would get excited when we would hold hands. She was herself at seven-years-old. She knew who she was. I never met anyone like that at my age,” he told ET.
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9. Lea Michele & Matthew Morrison
In Lea Michele’s memoir, Brunette Ambition, she revealed that she hooked up with Matthew Morrison before they starred on Glee together. Reflecting on the romance, Lea says she met Matthew while they were both working on Broadway and dated for a brief time.
“When we shot the pilot [of Glee]…I had worked on Broadway with Jenna Ushkowitz and Matthew Morrison before. Matt had been a friend of mine for years, and in fact we’d actually dated back in the day for a Broadway beat,” Lea wrote.
10. Elliot Page & Kate Mara
Elliot Page revealed in his memoir, Page Boy, that he once secretly dated Kate Mara while she was dating Max Minghella. Looking back, he says he met Kate at a party and they began flirting — although he “could never imagine Kate Mara would want [him].” Shortly after, he attended a party at Kate and Max’s home, where they flirted again — and Max didn’t even give it “a second look.” Elliot and Kate ended up going on a few dates before things ended.
“I could not stop thinking about her. I was a goner,” he wrote, later adding, “Everything with Kate was becoming more complicated, more loaded. I was feeling let down. Perhaps the excitement no longer outweighed the challenges. I was chasing something that could not be, letting lust overwhelm me.”
In his book, Elliot also revealed that he secretly dated his Juno co-star Olivia Thirlby.
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11. Bethenny Frankel & Alex Rodriguez
Following years of rumors that Bethenny Frankel had secretly hooked up with Alex Rodriguez after his divorce, she finally confirmed that it was true. During an appearance on Watch What Happens Live, Bethenny shared that they went on a couple of dates.
“What is ‘used to date’ mean? I went out with him on two dates,” Bethenny said, and when asked if they kissed, she said she “honestly” didn’t remember.
12. Tom Cruise & Cher
Back in the 1980s, Cher and Tom Cruise secretly had a fling. The pair initially connected when they were invited to the White House for an event but their romance didn’t develop until much later. Looking back, she called Tom one of her “top five” lovers of all time.
“A bunch of people who were dyslexic were invited to the White House, and Tom and I are both dyslexic. We didn’t go out till way later, but there definitely was a connection there,” she explained, later adding, “Though I don’t get what he does, that whole Scientology thing. I can’t understand it so I just…don’t.”
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13. Joey Fatone & Pink
At the peak of NSYNC’s fame, Joey Fatone and Pink had a short romance. In the early 2000s, the pair went on several dates — although Joey and Pink have slightly different recollections of the course of their relationship. While Pink claims that Joey was “in love” with her, Joey recalls it just being a couple of dates.
“I actually asked her out a few times and we went out. We were cool as heck. But I guess I wasn’t her type, so that was it. We were still friends. That was it … I’m cool with being in the friend zone with Pink. There’s nothing wrong with that,” Joey later said.
14. Michael Cera & Aubrey Plaza
It turns out that Scott Pilgrim Vs The World co-stars Michael Cera and Aubrey Plaza were actually much closer than anyone thought. The pair dated for nearly a year and a half around the time they were filming the movie and after it wrapped, they nearly got married. They kept things secret until Aubrey revealed their romance years later during a podcast appearance.
As for their almost-marriage, Michael later shared that they thought it would be funny to tie the knot and then get divorced quickly after.
“We were driving through Vegas, and we almost just spontaneously took a detour and got married,” Michael told Rolling Stone. When asked if it would have been an “Elvis chapel situation,” he said, “Yeah. Like something where you get a certificate. I think the idea was to then get a divorce right away, so we could call each other ‘my ex-husband’ and ‘my ex-wife’ at like … 20.”
15. Sharon Osbourne & Jay Leno
Before Sharon Osbourne began dating her now-husband Ozzy, she had a fling with talk show host Jay Leno. Back in her early 20s, she met Jay through a friend who worked with him. She ended up prank calling him with a gal pal and Sharon’s British accent got him interested and they ended up meeting up. They secretly began hooking up — but it was short lived because Jay was also seeing someone else.
“He came to my house and he met me, and then we had a little fling. And the fling was more fling for me and not fling enough for him. Because a couple of months into it, he brought around his real love of his life for me to meet, and she was lovely and they took me to Fatburger and they showed me around town,” Sharon shared on The Talk.
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