By Molly Goddard
10:39am PST, Jan 15, 2025
Nick Lachey
The "With You" singer first met
Nick Lachey at a Hollywood Christmas Parade in 1998 and began dating one year later. The former power couple briefly split but tied the knot in October 2002.
During their marriage, Simpson and the 98 Degrees member, 51,
starred in the hit reality series
Newlyweds on MTV. However, in December 2005, the
Open Book author filed for divorce.
"I wanted my marriage to look perfect. I didn't mind if I looked dumb, but I wanted people to see the fairytale in Nick. In us," she penned in her 2020 memoir about what went wrong between them. "I had the Instagram-girlfriend syndrome before it was a thing and I wanted the world to see my husband in the best light because I was hopelessly in love with him."
Bam Margera
During an appearance on
The Howard Stern Show in September 2006,
Bam Margera alleged he and Simpson were briefly seeing each other.
"We were just
drinking margaritas and stuff and you know from there," the
Viva La Bam star, 45, claimed of allegedly hooking up with the fashion designer. "It was when her parents were away and Nick was away. It's not a secret."
Johnny Knoxville
The "A Public Affair" singer fueled rumors she had stepped out on her marriage to Lachey while shooting
The Dukes of Hazzard with
Johnny Knoxville. However, both parties denied the cheating claims.
"It's like Johnny and I were prison pen pals, two people who wanted too much to be with each other but were kept apart — by bars, by our stars, by our respective spouses," Simpson recalled in her memoir. "I felt a force drawing us together. To me, an emotional affair was worse than a physical one. It's funny, I know, because I had placed such an emphasis on s– by not having it before marriage. After I actually had s–, I
understood that the emotional part was what mattered. And Johnny and I had that."
John Mayer
The
Employee of the Month actress started a tumultuous relationship with
John Mayer in 2006. By May 2007, the pair called it quits. During a 2010 interview with
Playboy, the musician, 47, called Simpson a "sexual napalm" and said their chemistry was "like crack cocaine to me."
Despite Mayer raving about their time together, Simpson was not as enthralled. "John loved me when I was shining and he drew inspiration from that light. When he tapped me dry, he looked at me like I was withholding something from him,"
she penned about their relationship.
Tony Romo
Simpson dated NFL
Dallas Cowboys player
Tony Romo for two years before they ended things in 2009.
Despite the longevity of their romance, the businesswoman claimed Mayer was the reason why they didn't work out.
"[Tony] accused me of seeing John [Mayer] behind his back," she alleged in her memoir. "I hadn't cheated on Tony at all. But I could not lie and say I hadn't even seen [Mayer]."
Billy Corgan
In December 2009, Simpson was spotted out on a date with Smashing Pumpkins member
Billy Corgan in New York City. Although the two never confirmed their relationship.
"The stuff that I've seen doesn't have any bearing to the reality that I'm in," the guitarist told the
Chicago Tribune in 2010. "It's like being in a cartoon. It has nothing to do with what's really going on or how I feel."
Jeremy Renner
The shoe designer and
Jeremy Renner were briefly linked in 2010 after meeting a pre-Oscars cocktail party. An insider told
Us Weekly that their courtship allegedly ended when Simpson "showed up at his house one day" and the actor, 54, was reportedly with another woman.
Eric Johnson
The vocalist started dating NFL star Eric Johnson in May 2010. The football player, 45, got down on one knee and proposed six months later. The duo married in July 2014.
Simpson and Johnson welcomed daughter
Maxwell in May 2012, son
Ace in June 2013 and daughter
Birdie in March 2019. In January 2025, the mother-of-three announced she and her spouse had separated.
"Our children come first, and we are focusing on what is
best for them. We are grateful for all of the love and support that has been coming our way and appreciate privacy right now as we work through this as a family," she said in a statement.
