Case of the Ex: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly in Celebrity Cheating

By Sarah Crow Posted Nov 7th 2010 01:00PM

It's a story as old as time: boy meets girl, they fall in love, and somebody cheats. Although the formula is pretty standard, when one (or both) of the people involved are Hollywood celebs, it may not be as simple as splitting up your stuff. While some famous couples handle their breakups behind closed doors, others choose to take a less discreet route, airing their dirty laundry in front of millions.

Although it may be cathartic to open up about those who have hurt us, if done improperly, it can can come off as tacky and mean-spirited. Here are our votes for the celebrities who have done the best and worst jobs at staying civil after their split.

Stars who didn't spill:

Sandra Bullock

Bullock had a particularly messy divorce from husband Jesse James following his alleged infidelity with tattooed troublemaker Michelle "Bombshell" McGee, among others, but the Oscar winner kept her composure and bounced back with incredible grace and a new man in her life - adorable son Louis.

Ryan Phillippe

The actor, who divorced wife Reese Witherspoon after 7 years of marriage, kept quiet about the breakup, causing wild speculation about the reasons behind the split. The actor was rumored to have cheated on his wife with actres Abbie Cornish, with whom he starred in the 2008 film 'Stop-Loss.' It wasn't until 2010 that Phillippe publicly addressed his divorce, telling Howard Stern, "Who announces a breakup? I don't understand that! There's no need for that."

Justin Timberlake

The singer/actor/man-about-town has been the alleged victim and perpetrator of cheating scandals throughout his career, Timberlake has kept quiet about the rumors. Despite his diplomatic behavior, Timberlake did seem to direct some of his anger at ex and reported cheater Britney Spears. The video for Timberlake's 2003 song 'Cry Me a River,' featured Timberlake breaking into the house of a Spears look-alike and filming an intimate tryst with another woman. Ever the gentleman, Timberlake told audiences at MTV's TRL, "The video is not about [Spears]. The video is about me."

Stars who blabbed:

LeAnn Rimes

The country crooner started a relationship with 'Northern Lights' co-star Eddie CIbrian while both she and Cibrian were still married to their significant others. Rimes discussed her affair with Cibrian in the 2010 issue of PEOPLE, telling the magazine, "I take responsibility for everything I've done. I hate that people got hurt. But I don't regret the outcome." Earlier this month, Shape magazine editor Valerie Latona apologized to readers for putting Rimes on the cover, saying, "Please know that our putting her on the cover was not meant to put a husband-stealer on a pedestal... Shape has made a terrible mistake."

David Letterman

'Late Show' funnyman David Letterman beat his detractors to the punch when news of his affairs broke. Letterman, who was the target for an attempted extortion scheme hatched by his former mistress' boyfriend, took to his show to expose his extortionist and apologize to his staff and his wife.

Usher

The singer dated TLC singer Chilli from 2001-2004, was plagued with cheating rumors near the end of his relationship with the girl-group star, particularly after his extremely personal album, 'Confessions,' hit airwaves. After the relationship had ended, both Chilli and Usher discussed his infidelity in an interview with VH1, but despite their breakup, the pair addressed the issue with civility. Usher, now a father of two, has grown from the experience, telling PopEater, "The love I have had in the past has shown me a lot and I have learned a lot."

So what do you think? Is it better to keep quiet, or do stars have a responsibility to share this info with fans?

Tags: sandra bullock

Comments

(6)

Sunday 07 November

By Jo

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I always "love" how Julia Roberts -- media darling -- seems to be exempt in all stories regarding celebrity cheating considering her husband left his wife for her.

Let's stop beating a dead horse and have a little perspective and honest journalism here. The same old stories (Rimes, James, etc.) are getting old.

By movie5star

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There is no perfect human in this world.Especially in young age, who still often interested in something new and interesting.

Wednesday 10 November

By nelle

There is nothing gentlemanly about Justin Timberlake, he told the world Britney Spears wasn't a virgin, as she claimed and threw Janet Jackson under a bus after that superbowl scandal, when he was just as much to blame as her. Thats not a gentleman in my book, thats a petty coward.

Monday 08 November

By anonymous

@jo Wasnt julia roberts husbands 1st. wife vera wang?

Thursday 23 December

By barbara

i would like to spend a week with the kardasians for one reason and one reason only. To protect bruce and save him from them three older stepdaughters.

Sunday 26 December

By Grandmother

I have been married for nearly 53 years Me and my husband have had a lot of trauma in our lives and not a lot of money but we stayed together through thick and thin not because we had to it was because we wanted to. We shared our troubles and laughed a lot over some of them, that is why we are still together. Some people don't work at marriage nowadays,I feel sorry for anyone in a broken marriage,whoever breaks that marriage.

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