They always say that it’s devastating when someone goes through a breakup, regarding of the circumstances, but it’s even better when they do it in a way that actually sees them elevate from whoever they were seeing in the past. If we were to use a scandal as an example, it’s not too common to see these celebrities dump their significant other and unsurprisingly find themselves in a committed relationship with someone who is not only better looking but perhaps even wealthier and more successful than their exes.
If any of these famous faces could go back and reverse time to change some of their dating past, they most likely would, but in doing so, they may have never met the amazing people they would go on to date (or even marry) because of it. Sometimes as cliché as it may sound, one has to go through the downs to experience the highs, and these celebrities would definitely know a thing or two when it comes to going through something like that.
See below for the 20 famous faces who upgraded big time after breaking up with their exes, and find out whether they are still together with their upgraded partners.
20. ASHTON KUTCHER
Ashton Kutcher marrying Demi Moore left a lot of people confused when the couple even first announced they had plans to tie the knot. Pulling through with the actual thing became quite the shock, but what didn’t seem to surprise anyone was when scandals concerning Kutcher’s alleged double life outside of his marriage came out. Ashton was said to be living a double life behind Demi’s back and would go on to see the twosome split and agree to divorce on mutual terms; Kutcher has since moved on with the ever-so-beautiful Mila Kunis, who is much more in his age group, also.
19. JENNIFER ANISTON
Who can forget how Jennifer Aniston was pretty much dumped by her ex-husband Brad Pitt so that he could freely go on to live a happy life with Angelina Jolie? Well, maybe not so happy since the two would go on to divorce, but nonetheless, Brad broke Jennifer’s heart because she genuinely thought they would be together for a lifetime.
Fortunately for her, Jennifer went on to find love again with Justin Theroux, who she’d go on to marry. The couple lasted five years together before calling it quits, but at least she made it down the aisle, right?
18. ROBERT PATTINSON
Everyone that was obsessed with Twilight couldn’t believe it when they found out Kristen Stewart had cheated on Robert Pattinson — it was pretty devastating since many believed the twosome would last a lifetime together. Unfortunately, they didn’t, but that didn’t stop R-Patz from finding love again.
The actor would go on to date FKA Twigs, with whom he would share a four-year relationship with before calling it quits at the end of 2017. From what was gathered, there was no scandals involved and the former couple remained to be good friends, which is always the best way to end a relationship.
17. RIHANNA
Rihanna has had some pretty bad luck when it came to picking out boyfriends, having ranged from those that have been rude to her, written diss tracks against her, or even manipulated her into thinking she stood a chance to eventually settle down with them.
Fortunately for the Bajan-beauty, she eventually said enough was enough with all the industry guys and started dating billionaire businessman Hassan Jameel who she has been with since summer 2017. That’s quite the upgrade from the likes of Drake and Chris Brown that the singer was so used to dating in the past — and she hasn’t looked back since.
16. KARRUECHE
Karrueche, too, has had her fair share of bad exes, particularly her most famous one: Chris Brown. The Hollywood bad boy, who credits himself for giving the socialite a career, was said to have been rude towards Karrueche on multiple occasions, which left her no other option but to file a restraining order against him once and for all, having mentioned that she often feared for her life following their breakup. Karueche is now said to be happily in love with athlete Victor Cruz who she’s been seeing since the beginning of 2018 — that’s quite the upgrade, that’s for sure.
15. JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE
It’s still stunning to think that Britney Spears had the nerve to allegedly break Justin Timberlake’s heart by falling for someone else. In a way, it was bittersweet because it saw the pop universe weep over what everyone thought seemed to be the perfect Hollywood romance while on the other hand, Justin got himself several hit records out of the breakup, including Cry Me A River. The scandal did Justin some good though because years down the line he would fall in love with actress Jessica Biel, who he has since settled down with. The two are happier than ever before and there’ definitely no chance of a Britney reunion.
14. CIARA
Ciara had a tough time accepting the fact that her ex-boyfriend Future just wasn’t interested in treating her right. It was constantly being alleged that the rapper had been unfaithful to his girlfriend at the time with other women, but most disturbingly it was all happening while she was pregnant with their first child together. Consequently enough, Ciara ditched Future and found herself a better man in Russell Wilson; an NFL player for the Seattle Seahawks. The couple has since welcomed a child into the world, not to forget that they also tied the knot together and even abstained until marriage.
13. BRITNEY SPEARS
Karma can be difficult to comprehend because it strikes when you least expect it and that’s exactly what happened to Britney Spears when she thought that settling down with Kevin Federline was going to change her life for the better. The backup dancer had dated Britney for several months before the two decided to tie the knot and welcome two children into the world, but it wasn’t long before their romance came crashing down, consequently leading to Spears’ infamous meltdown. Now, however, she’s in a much better space in life, having committed herself to a full-on romance with Ashgari.
12. EDDIE CIBRIAN
Eddie Cibrian is quite the character. He apparently left Brandi Glanville for Leann Rimes who he was secretly hooking up with, but apparently, there had been a scandal involved on both sides during his time with Glanville, so the fact that he would leave her for another woman didn’t seem that much of a shock when that rumor came out. Brandi never commented on whether she did that to Eddie which makes it that much more concerning, to say the least, but Eddie found happiness with Leann, who he has been with for six years now, so clearly, the two are doing something right together.
11. KIM KARDASHIAN
Kim Kardashian often brands herself as a hopeless romantic. When she started dating Reggie Bush, the reality star genuinely thought she had found someone that she could spend the rest of her life with, until she would go on to learn that the athlete had allegedly been going behind her back causing the relationship to fall apart in an instant. Years down the line, and a few men that also didn’t cut it for Kim, she eventually settled for Kanye who she’s now been married to for three years and shares three children with. Quite the upgrade, that’s for sure.
10. NICKI MINAJ
Nicki Minaj spent 12 years of her life with Safaree Samuels. She genuinely thought that he was going to be the guy she would have her first child with, but after he was involved in a scandal, the female rapper wasted no time in making it known that she wanted to break up with him and move on with her life. Though she hasn’t had the best luck with men since then, her best to date has been Nas, who, although she has since split with, they have remained to be close friends and still talk to each other as much as their schedule allows them to.
9. MARIAH CAREY
Mariah Carey is a diva with high demands, so it’s not hard to believe that Nick Cannon was struggling to stay committed to the singer with all her high maintenance and bratty attitude if you were to believe everything you read in the papers. Supposedly a scandal played a part in Nick’s marriage downfall but it seemed that he was just over the relationship and wanted out. Well, luckily for Mariah she bounced back in no time, finding herself a billionaire James Packer who would spoil her with a $13 million engagement ring. The two are no longer together but Mariah kept the ring.
8. JENNIFER LOPEZ
Jennifer Lopez and her romance downfall with Ben Affleck was said to have been blamed on the supposed fact that the actor had a wandering eye for other women. Despite their engagement, Ben wanted out of the relationship and Jennifer respected his wishes. It’s good that this happened because J.Lo would end up finding herself married to Marc Anthony, who she ended up having two children with — again, no longer together but still business partners and great friends. That’s awesome. Turns out that Ben more or less did Jennifer a favor by dumping her to be with other women.
7. GWEN STEFANI
Nobody saw this one coming but when the Gavin Rossdale’s scandal rocked the media, the one that was heartbroken the most, for obvious reasons, was Gwen Stefani. She had known Gavin for such a long time and never suspected him of doing stuff, but it turned out it was all true. That would’ve been the breaking point for anybody, right? Fortunately for Gwen, she fell hard for Blake Shelton when they met on NBC’s The Voice and they’ve been together ever since. It’s even rumored that Blake wants to have kids with Gwen in the near future followed by a lavish wedding.
6. KOURTNEY KARDASHIAN
All the Kardashians seem to have bad luck when it comes to the men they date, but no one has had it quite as rough as Kourtney Kardashian who found herself in the middle of a scandal while dating Scott Disick. The father-of-three, who is no stranger to have dealt with these things in the past, would constantly be seen flirting with other women while still in a relationship with Kourtney. And in 2016, the reality star said enough was enough; she ditched Scott and has since been seeing Younes Bendjima, who is not only a model but almost half her age. You go, girl.
5. IGGY AZALEA
Iggy Azalea got her heart broken quite bad when Nick Young found himself exposed by several women claiming they had been with the NBA player and had evidence to prove it. Mind you, Iggy had already been planning her dream wedding with the basketball star at the time she found out about the affairs, so it must have been even more heartbreaking for her. Though it took her a good amount of time to get over it, she went on to date Tyga, who, has a similar past, but seems to have treated Iggy well so far, so definitely an upgrade.
4. SELENA GOMEZ
Selena Gomez was involved in a scandal with Justin Bieber and it was devastating for both of their fanbases to comprehend. People felt like these two were the perfect couple and the supposed fact that Justin would step out on Gomez and consequently break her heart was pretty astounding. Luckily for Selena, however, while it took her a moment to get over Bieber, she went on to date Orlando Bloom who is known to not only have a stellar career but also a fun personality. The two didn’t date all that long but they’ve remained friends following their split. It’s good to still be on great terms with an ex that was definitely an upgrade from the Biebs.
3. BIG SEAN
Big Sean found himself in quite the unfortunate relationship when he started dating Naya Rivera. The couple didn’t last all that long because it wasn’t long before the rapper had accused his then-girlfriend of cheating on him, to which she responded to by calling Big Sean broke and claiming that his net worth didn’t even come close to how much she made from her work on television alone. Ouch. Sean has since found himself a girl that truly respects him: Jhene Aiko. And she’s not obsessed with how much he makes, which must make him feel that much better about the romance potentially lasting a lifetime.
2. TAYLOR SWIFT
Taylor Swift being involved in scandals involving her exes isn’t all that surprising. The singer writes about it all the time in her songs, that’s how she tends to write some of her best songs, ranging from Joe Jonas to John Mayer. But it seems that Joe Alwyn has really found himself to hold a special place in Taylor’s heart. The two have been dating since the summer of 2017 and from what’s been gathered, Swift is smitten by the actor, who has not only remained faithful to her but treats her with nothing but respect. Not something some of her exes can say.
1. KATY PERRY
It is said that the reason why Katy Perry and ex-boyfriend Russell Brand broke up because he could not handle the level of fame that she had. Honestly, we get it, it is not meant for everyone, and that is no one’s fault. Some people just handle the pressure than others, some people are simply not meant for Hollywood at all. It sucks, but it is true. However, considering his rude persona, she definitely upgraded boyfriends now that she is with the hunky and fashionale Orlando Bloom.
