For this list, we’ll be looking at celebrities who saw their professional prospects dim after hooking up with another famous person. We’re not saying these relationships were the sole cause of the career destruction, but that they likely had at least notable effect. Some of these jilted lovers may have bounced back, but as long as their business got back burnered for any span of time, they are fair game.
Do any of these limelight liaisons making you wince or wag your finger? Let us know in the comments below.
#10: Meg Ryan & Russell Crowe
For years she was Hollywood’s rom com heavyweight champion. Ryan claimed the title with her unforgettable performance in 1989’s “When Harry Met Sally.” She tied the knot with Dennis Quaid in 1991, her co-star from 1987’s “Innerspace,”which seemed fitting. Ryan continued to see success over the years with “Sleepless in Seattle,” “You’ve Got Mail,” and many others. Everything seemed like a fairytale in public, though behind the scenes Ryan’s marriage had problems. When she started dating Russell Crowe, tabloids had a field day. The pair’s film “Proof of Life” may have suffered at the box office as a result. After 2004’s “Against the Ropes” failed to connect with audiences, Ryan took a three year hiatus from acting all together.
#9: LeAnn Rimes & Eddie Cibrian
This country music siren was just a kid when she hit the big time with the release of her first studio album “Blue” in 1996. She won two Grammys the next year, cementing her status as a music industry maven even though she wasn’t old enough to drive. The southern belle branched out into acting with a straight to TV flick in 1997, but made the leap to the silver screen a few years later in “Coyote Ugly.” A little over a decade later, her affair with actor Eddie Cibrian while filming a Lifetime movie put a serious dent in her wholesome image. The public shaming hurt her career, though her subsequent victory on “The Masked Singer” showed Rimes can still shine.
#8: Denise Richards & Charlie Sheen
This stunning actor once seemed a possibility for an A-list career, though now her position in the alphabetic hierarchy of fame is somewhat lower. Her acting career began in the early 90s with a series of laughably bad films, including one where her boyfriend’s brain ends up inside a giant cybernetic dinosaur. A few years later, Richards’ rise was kickstarted by her roles in “Starship Troopers'' and “Wild Things.” It culminated with her turn as a Bond girl in 1999, but after marrying Charlie Sheen in 2001, it was all downhill. The abusive relationship ended when she filed for divorce in 2006. Her career never reached the same heights, but she has managed to continue working steadily in film and television - but her star has definitely dimmed.
#7: Angelina Jolie & Brad Pitt
What can we say? Jolie was getting acting awards and generally slaying it before she hooked up with Brad Pitt. During their marriage, Jolie started testing her luck at directing. Since “Mr. & Mrs. Smith,” her onscreen performances have decreased, though she did hit the jackpot with her roles in “Maleficent” and “Changeling.” However, before that, she was pretty much in everything, including the crime thriller “The Bone Collector” and “Girl, Interrupted.” While most fans hold her directing dreams accountable, we have to wonder how her movie career would have panned out had she not yoinked Jennifer Aniston’s man. Plus, it seems like the two have zero luck making movies together. “Mr. & Mrs. Smith” and “By The Sea” sadly weren’t that good - and the latter performed embarrassingly at the box office.
#6: Jennifer Lopez & Ben Affleck
Jenny from the block burst into the public eye as a dancer for the early 90s sketch comedy series “In Living Color.” Her titular role in the 1997 musician biopic “Selena” cemented her fame. She continued to slay on screen, battling snakes, bank robbers and a serial killer’s subconscious. Her musical career took off with her first studio album “On the 6” in 1999. This double-threat was riding high until hooking up with Ben Affleck. Dubbed Bennifer, the couple’s 2003 comedy “Gigli” bombed hard. J.Lo found it difficult to brush off the boxoffice stink, eventually entering a professional rough patch. Despite this, the beauty from the Bronx battled back to the top, becoming a judge for “American Idol” and starring in 2019’s “Hustlers.”
#5: Whitney Houston & Bobby Brown
She may have always loved Flash B, but fans didn’t feel the same way. Houston was a musical prodigy from a young age. In addition to powerful pipes, she had model-level good looks and plenty of charisma. Hits like “Saving All My Love for You,” “Greatest Love of All,” and many more dominated charts and hearts for decades. After joining with Brown in holy matrimony in 1992, her personal life and spouse’s legal troubles started stealing the spotlight. By the early 2000s, the singer’s albums no longer dominated charts in the same way, but her marriage still grabbed headlines. Brown was charged with battery against Houston and some fans felt he was a destructive influence. Her husband’s reality TV show didn’t help as it portrayed Houston negatively, but Houston bounced back a few years later before tragically passing away.
#4: Britney Spears & Kevin Federline
This pop star’s downward spiral may have begun with her 55-hour long marriage to Jason Allen Alexander, but oops, she did it again when tying the knot with Kevin Federline after dating for just three months. To make matters worse, Federline’s ex was pregnant with his child at the time, which wasn’t a great look. Not content with his new wife's fame and fortune, the pair appeared in a short lived reality TV show about their relationship. After their divorce, Spears experienced some very public difficulties, culminating with her infamous head shaving incident. She has recovered with a sold-out residency in Las Vegas, but the 2007 breakdown continues to mar her career.
#3: Katie Holmes & Tom Cruise
She played America’s girl next door on “Dawson’s Creek” until landing the real-life role of Tom Cruise’s wife in 2006. However, shortly before that, she did manage to snag a prominent part in Christopher Nolan’s 2005 movie “Batman Begins.” Despite the film’s success, she decided not to participate in the sequel, which we’re sure had nothing to do with her co-star famously modelling his “American Psycho” character on Cruise’s mannerisms. Some fans speculated Cruise and the birth of their daughter, Suri, played a part in her several years long hiatus from acting. Whatever the case, she’s been staying busy since, with parts in everything from “The Giver” to “Coda.”
#2: Kurt Cobain & Courtney Love
Nirvana’s frontman had a marriage as famous as it was toxic. The 90’s Sid and Nancy first met in Portland, Oregon, with Love playing the pursuer. Cobain eventually gave in to her advances and the pair had a romantic Hawaii wedding in 1992, roughly half a year after the band’s breakout album “Nevermind” was released. Though the bride wore a dress once belonging to a famous actress, the groom opted for the more casual attire of green pajamas. This inauspicious beginning was not the first warning sign for the self-destructive duo. Their battles with substance abuse were well documented and being together may have exacerbated their problem. Cobain’s marriage ended with his suicide in 1994, causing millions of fans across the country and world to mourn his loss.
Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.
Demi Moore & Ashton Kutcher
After Her Marriage to a Much Younger Actor, This Hollywood Star Hasn’t Risen Again
Kris Humphries & Kim Kardashian
He’s One Baller Who Never Quite Bounced Back from His Reality TV Marriage
Pamela Anderson & Tommy Lee
This Blonde Bombshell’s Rocky Marriage to the Mötley Crüe Drummer Was Overexposed
#1: Amber Heard & Johnny Depp
Mutual career destruction was the outcome of this power couple’s split. A lot of this was down to Depp’s fame and their messy divorce, which ended with Heard alleging domestic assault. She was on her way up when she landed what then seemed like a dream job starring opposite Depp in “The Rum Diary.” However, her acting career was eclipsed shortly after the pair started dating. Even her role as a superheroine and undersea royalty got washed away by their very messy divorce. The acrimonious breakup dragged on in the courts and tabloids for years. Nowadays, Heard is still acting, but she might have been an even bigger star had she never waded into the deep end with Depp.
