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Vanessa Lachey addresses Nick’s divorce from Jessica Simpson

Before dating and marrying Vanessa, Nick Lachey was married to Jessica Simpson.


Senior Writer
APRIL 8, 2022 3:54 PM EDT

Nick Lachey is known for his hosting gigs on Netflix and his musical career, but mostly due to his relationship with Jessica Simpson. The two were in a highly public relationship, documented in their reality series “Newlyweds,” which aired for three seasons. In Netflix’s new reality show, “The Ultimatum,” Vanessa Lachey addressed Nick’s divorce and how that impacted their lives.

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Jessica and Nick were married for three years.

“He was literally in a very public marriage and a very public divorce, and I had to go through all that s--t very publicly and it was very hard for us,” she says in the sixth episode of the series. “It wasn’t until the moment that he was like, ‘I’m gonna let it go,‘ and I said, ‘I’m gonna let it go,’ and we truly committed to each other.” Vanessa mentioned this experience to participants right before they were about to reunite with their former partners.

Vanessa and Nick started dating when she made an appearance in his music video, “What’s Left of Me,” a song that he recorded the day Simpson and him agreed on proceeding with their divorce. The shooting of the video occurred 5 months after Nick’s split from Simpson, a moment that was highly publicized due to their status as some of the biggest pop stars around. Simpson and Lachey started dating in early 2000’s, going on tours together and making music, propelling them as the “it couple” for a couple of years. Despite their public divorce, the two are on good terms. “There’s a mutual respect there. It was a long time ago. We’ve all moved on,” said Nick on the “Today Show.”

Vanessa and Nick have collaborated on several Netflix shows, including “Love is Blind” and “The Ultimatum.” Throughout the latter show, the two often mention their relationship as a reference point for participants, discussing a split they had before they got married, taking the moment as something that helped them recognize that they wanted to commit to each other.