by Kristen HarrisBuzzFeedBuzzFeed StaffAs a staff writer at BuzzFeed, I write about all things celeb and pop culture.

Listen, I know I'm probably the only person in the world who genuinely believes Taylor Swift and Tom Hiddleston's short-lived 2016 relationship was the real deal, but there are a surprising number of celebrities who've openly admitted to faking their relationships for clout or using their partner for fame.

Here are 14 celeb relationships and rumored romances that were totally fake or just for fame:

Ahead of the release of 2023's Anyone But You, fans speculated that lead actors Sydney Sweeney and Glen Powell, who were both in relationships with other people at the time, were allegedly having an affair. Glen's then-girlfriend, Gigi Paris, seemingly unfollowed Sydney on Instagram, adding fuel to the fire.

John Lamparski / WireImage / Via Getty

In August 2023, Sydney told Variety, "It's a rom-com. That's what people want! Glen and I don't really care. We have so much fun together, and we respect each other so much; he's such a hard worker, and I'm a hard worker. We're excited for the press tour, and I literally just left ADR with him. We talk all the time like, 'That's really funny.'"

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Then, that December, she told Glamour UK, "It was really hard on Glen, which made me sad… because [otherwise] it was such a beautiful experience for the both of us. I care for him so much...Also, I've never really shared that much [about my relationship], so the press loves to create drama in stories."

However, in 2024, Glen revealed that playing into the rumors to promote the film had been Sydney's idea. He told the New York Times, "The two things that you have to sell a rom-com are fun and chemistry. Sydney and I have a ton of fun together, and we have a ton of effortless chemistry. That's people wanting what's on the screen off the screen, and sometimes you just have to lean into it a bit — and it worked wonderfully. Sydney is very smart."

Mark Von Holden/NBC / NBC via Getty Images

In 2025, Gigi Paris, whom Glen was dating for real amid the rumors about him and Sydney, shared her side of the story. She told the Too Much Podcast that, when she noticed she was being tagged in posts about the caption her then-partner put on a photo, she sent him a screenshot with the message, "Hey, the whole world is watching what you're saying, please just proceed with caution."

Gigi continued, "And that wasn't received well. From there, there was a steady decline... It was just, 'This is what I have to do for my job.' I had two options. I could either pretend like I was going along with everything and have everyone wonder, like, 'Are they hooking up? Are they not hooking up? Is she okay with this? What the fuck?' Or stand up for myself and say, 'No, I'm actually not okay with this, and I'm walking away.' So that's what I decided to do. I was shattered. ...

I don't know if there was a relationship there or not, but then they came out to say it was all a PR scheme at the expense of our relationship... I honestly hoped that they'd end up together. At least it would make it worth it for me."

In 2006, Steve-O and Nicole Richie were at the center of dating rumors. Appearing on The Howard Stern Show later that year, Steve-O said that he was fine with the fact that, since she'd just broken off her engagement, she wasn't actually interested in dating or hooking up with him. He said, "It's, like, by far more important to me to continue going around town with the paparazzi chasing us everywhere. Because the truth is, what she wanted was to get some media coverage that wasn't about her being fucking skinny..."

Bruce Gifford / FilmMagic via Getty, J.Sciulli / WireImage via Getty

Jokingly, he added, "It was a ridiculous publicity stunt... '[I'll] run around with fucking Steve-O, and they won't be talking about how skinny I am. They'll say I've lost my goddamn mind.'"

Nicole Richie and Brody Jenner reportedly dated for about two months in 2006. In a MySpace post Nicole made after their split, she said, "The truth is, we were never really together. We hung out, and he's a nice guy, but my heart was never in it. Anything further is just a cry for publicity."

KMazur / WireImage / Via Getty

Then, in a 2007 profile on Brody, his "manager/publicist/agent/stylist" Spencer Pratt told Details magazine that the relationship had been his idea to help get his friend's name out there. Making light of the tabloids' fixation with Nicole's weight during the '00s, Spencer claimed that he told Brody, "Here's what you're gonna do. You're gonna start dating Nicole Richie. And you're gonna get that skinny bitch to eat, all right? You are about to become The Guy Who Got Nicole Richie to Eat. Process that shit, bro. You'll be, like, a fucking hero to America."

John Shearer / WireImage for Teen Vogue via Getty, Frank Micelotta / Getty Images for Spike TV

In late 2006, Brody Jenner was in another not-quite

Fake Celebrity PR Relationships