Many celebs do better when they’re together. There’s nothing that fans love more than a real-life romance between costars. Movies get so much more attention if the on-screen chemistry translates off the screen as well. There have been many power couples over the years and we suspect that a handful of them were arranged as publicity stunts.
Then there are those celebrities that seem to perform in front of the paparazzi, making it glaringly obvious that their public displays of affection are all for show. From using a romance to promote a musical collaboration to being together just long enough to make a well-timed appearance on the red carpet, these duos seem totally staged. Please enjoy this list of 20 Celebrities Who Only Dated Each Other For Attention.
20 Shawn Mendes & Camila Cabello
Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello are currently dating and are showing some serious public displays of affection all over social media. However, many of Cabello’s fans think that the romance is just a publicity stunt since their collaboration on the song “Señorita.” Especially after their well-timed spicy performance at the 2019 MTV Video Music Awards.
19 Pete Davidson & Ariana Grande
Ariana Grande and Pete Davidson seemed to have fireworks when they were engaged in 2018 after only dating for a few months. The timing seems a bit suspicious to us, being that Grande was about to drop her new album, "Sweetener" and Davidson was promoting a movie. The whole thing fizzled out soon after.
18 Henry Cavill & Kaley Cuoco
This next celeb couple had everyone talking in Hollywood when they went on several dates around Los Angeles in 2013 and displayed some major PDA. Henry Cavill and Kelly Cuoco dated for less than two weeks but managed to put on quite a show in front of the paparazzi. The fact that things started so hot and ended so cold makes us wonder if their relationship was a PR stunt.
17 Taylor Swift & Tom Hiddleston
Who could forget the short-lived romance between Taylor Swift and Tom Hiddleston in 2016? The couple that will forever be remembered as Hiddleswift seemed as if their entire relationship was just for show. From slow walks on the beach to well-timed make-out sessions, their seemingly scripted affection was on full display for photographers.
16 Kim Kardashian & Kris Humphreys
Kim Kardashian and Kris Humphries were married for 72 days in 2011 when things ended in a nasty divorce. It’s easy to assume that much of their relationship was staged because they paraded their romance in front of the cameras. Fans watched the downfall of their marriage on the show, Keeping Up with the Kardashians.
15 Rob Kardashian & Blac Chyna
Rob Kardashian and Blac Chyna were together in 2017 and it's been said that their relationship was arranged for the show, Rob & Chyna. According to In Touch, “Rob had agreed to have a fake relationship with Chyna because his momager, Kris Jenner, got E! to pay him over $2 million to do a show,” a family insider revealed.
14 Jennifer Lopez & Drake
Jennifer Lopez and Drake were an item for two months and they may have been together to promote a musical collaboration. The duo took to social media often to share their love fest. J-Lo admitted to Entertainment Tonight that they were working together saying, "He just asked me to do a song with him and that's what we've been doing."
13 Shailene Woodley & Theo James
We can add Shailene Woodley and Theo James to the list of celebrities who are suspected of having a “showmance.” The duo sparked romance rumors while promoting the Divergent movie. According to The Daily Mail, they displayed quite a bit of potentially staged chemistry in front of the cameras.
12 Katy Perry & Riff Raff
Katy Perry and Riff Raff got tongues wagging when they appeared together on the 2014 VMA red carpet in coordinated denim outfits. The faux couple received tons of coverage because their outfits were an homage to the iconic denim outfits worn by Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake to the 2001 American Music Awards red carpet.
11 Tyga & Kylie Jenner
Tyga and Kylie Jenner were in a relationship for 2 years and we won’t dispute that their love seemed genuine. However, it does seem a little bit fishy that the exes have conveniently run into each other in so many public places since Jenner split from Travis Scott in October. The two have been spotted rubbing shoulders and it seems a bit staged.
10 Selena Gomez & Justin Bieber
Selena Gomez and Justin Bieber’s on-again/off-again relationship was often used as a publicity stunt. We aren’t the only ones who think so. According to Hollywood Life, a source said that Bieber felt like she exploited their relationship during her dramatic performance of the song The Heart Wants What It Wants at the 2014 American Music Awards.
9 Jennifer Aniston & Vince Vaughn
Jennifer Aniston and Vince Vaughn embarked on a short-lived relationship in 2005 while working on the The Break-Up. Rumors circulated about wedding plans, but the couple broke things off after a year of dating. Was this a case of love fizzling out or was it a “showmance” to promote their movie? Only they know the truth.
8 Vanessa Hudgens & Zac Efron
Fans of High School Musical loved that Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens not only played a couple on but were together in real life. The duo dated for five years but broke up in 2010, not long after the series had ended its run. Many people have speculated that their romance was staged.
7 Kristin Stewart & Robert Pattinson
Kristen Stewart and Robert Patterson had so much chemistry in the Twilight movies as Edward and Bella that the entire world rooted for them to be a couple. They conveniently dated during the filming of all five of the films in the Twilight saga, but things came to a screeching halt when Stewart was caught getting cozy with Rupert Sanders.
6 Kendall Jenner & Harry Styles
Kendall Jenner and Harry Styles dated in 2016 and there’s been speculation that it was a set up by Kris Jenner. According to Celebrity Dirty Laundry, a source said, “Poor Kendall – she’s in a terrible spot. She doesn’t want to let her mom down, and she adores Harry as a friend, so she’s going along with the whole charade, at least for now.”
5 Emma Stone & Andrew Garfield
Emma Stone and Andrew Garfield met on the set of The Amazing Spider-Man and sparks flew between them. They dated for four years and gushed about each other until they broke up in 2015. They had a reconciliation but many suspect that it was all to help Stone promote the film Aloha.
4 Britney Spears & Justin Timberlake
Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake were a match made in pop culture heaven. According to Marie Claire UK, the whole thing was just or show. "Their breakup was scheduled and went down the way their agents and publicists wanted it to. The whole thing brought in a lot of attention and money- just the way it was supposed to,” an insider said.
3 Ryan Seacrest & Julianne Hough
Ryan Seacrest and Julianna Hough began dating in 2010 and split in 2013. Many tabloids speculated that the relationship was just for attention after the duo were spotted being affectionate with one-another. There was just one problem: the photos looked totally staged, sparking rumors that it was all a stunt.
2 Miley Cyrus & Liam Hemsworth
Miley Cyrus and Liam Hemsworth met in 2009 on the set of the film, The Last Song. These two broke up and got back together so many times that even the tabloids couldn’t keep up. Were they married? Did they split? Who is Miley kissing now? It all seems so fake to us.
1 Katie Holmes & Tom Cruise
Who could forget the Hollywood power couple, Tomkat? Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes were married from 2006 to 2012, but the entire set up feels a bit fishy if you ask us. Rumors circulated that Cruise even auditioned Holmes to be his girlfriend after his divorce from actress, Nicole Kidman.
Sources: Intouch.com, Etonline.com, Dailymail.co.uk, Hollywoodlife.com, Celebdirtylaundry.com
