Glen Powell won’t twist anyone else’s lived experience.
Three months after the Twisters star’s ex Gigi Paris broke her silence on their breakup—alleging Glen allowed the Anyone But You producers to bar her from visiting set amid the romance rumors between him and costar Sydney Sweeney—Glen is sharing his point of view.
“I will always have nothing but love for her and respect for her,” he told GQ in an interview published Sept. 9. “Everybody’s always going to have their own narrative on things and all that. And she’s welcome to it.”
He continued, “Relationships are really hard. And when two people break up, they each go to their own brunch and they will each tell their own narrative.”
Instead of fretting too deeply about the speculation over his love life—current or past—Glen turns back to a piece of advice he got from his Top Gun: Maverick costar Tom Cruise, now a friend and mentor to Glen.
“He basically said, ‘Hey, it’s going to get really, really loud. It’s your job to just turn the volume down,’” the 36-year-old recalled. “‘Just remember you have your hand on that switch. You have your hand on the ability to turn up that noise or turn it down.’ And really just turning down the noise and trusting your own gut has been a real godsend for me.”
Back in June, Gigi—who dated Glen for three years before their 2023 breakup—addressed their split for the first time, as well as the speculation over Glen’s chemistry with Sydney during the Anyone But You press tour and why their relationship ended.
“I had two options,” she said during her appearance on the Too Much podcast at the time. “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 f–k?’ 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.”
But, as she noted, “I was shattered.”
And while she conceded she and Glen had been navigating “issues” prior to the Anyone But You media storm, she said the entire situation was still a challenging one.
“I just wanted respect, especially if it’s gonna be public,” she explained. “Like, don’t make an ass out of me. Don’t make a fool out of someone you’ve been with for over three years, talking about forever with. Just have some decency, you know? And at the end of the day, it was like, ‘Well, work comes first.’ And if that’s the case, power to you, that’s your priority. I gotta walk away.”
The 33-year-old added, “What sucked was how it was handled. I felt like I was just fed to the dogs.”
Following the December 2023 release of Anyone But You, both Glen and Sydney addressed the romance speculation, saying their relationship had only ever been platonic.
As Glen told The New York Times in April 2024, “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.”
For more costars who never actually dated—despite their onscreen chemistry—keep reading.
Emma Watson and Tom Felton
Hermione Granger and Draco Malfoy?! If Emma had it her way, the Harry Potter franchise would have had a Hogwarts House-crossed romance going down off-screen. The actress has admitted to nursing a serious crush on her bleached blonde co-star.
During the Harry Potter 20th anniversary special, Emma shared that as a child she “fell in love” with Tom while on the set of their first film together, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.
“I used to come in every day and look for his number on the call sheet, it was No. 7, and if his name was on the call sheet, it was an extra exciting day,” she said during the reunion. “He was three years above me and so for him he was like, ‘You’re like my little sister.'”
Shortly after the special premiered, fans of the series quickly took to the Internet to share their wish for the longtime friends to become something more.
However, in an interview with British Vogue, Emma addressed the online reaction and put any potential dating rumors to rest. “We speak most weeks,” she said, “and we just think it’s sweet.”
Jennifer Aniston and David Schwimmer
The one where Ross and Rachel were almost each other’s lobsters in real-life.
During HBO Max’s Friends reunion last year, Jennifer and David, who played one of TV’s most beloved couples, explained that art reflected real life a bit during the show’s first season. “At some point, we were both crushing hard on each other, but it was like two ships passing because one of us was always in a relationship, and we never crossed that boundary,” David said. “We respected that.”
Jennifer added, “Honestly, I remember saying one time to David, ‘It’s going to be such a bummer if the first time you and I actually kiss is going to be on national television.’ And sure enough, the first time we kissed was in that coffee shop.”
So, instead of having a romance IRL, she explained that they “just channeled all of our adoration and love for each other into Ross and Rachel.”
Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet
Arguably one of the most iconic pairings in movie history, fans have shipped Leo and Kate together since 1996’s Titanic (even though she didn’t make room for him on that door). Still, they never let go of their friendship, with Kate telling The Guardian last year that they are “bonded for life.”
From walking the red carpet together at the 1998 Golden Globes to watching DiCaprio blow kisses to Winslet during her emotional 2009 Golden Globes speech, it’s so evident that the feelings between the besties have only continued to grow over the past two decades, iceberg be damned.
Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper
The unexpected pairing’s chemistry in 2019’s A Star Is Born and its ensuing press tour made fans blind to the fact that the actor and director was dating Irina Shayk and the pop star was engaged to Christian Carano at the time.
Still, it was clear that the costars had a close bond, with Gaga revealing that she had an “instant connection” with Bradley that came “the second that I saw him.”
Of course, that closeness was on full display when the pair took to the Oscars stage in 2019, hand-in-hand, to perform their Best Song-winning number, “Shallow,” just days after Gaga ended her engagement.
But the House of Gucci star quickly shut down romance rumors following the performance, telling Jimmy Kimmel, “Yes, people saw love and—guess what—that’s what we wanted you to see.”
Bradley, whose romance with Irina ended later that year, never addressed the speculation until November 2021, telling The Hollywood Reporter they were acting during the Oscar performance.
“They kind of fall in love in that scene in the film,” he explained. “It’s that explosive moment that happens to them on a stage in front of thousands of people…It would have been so weird if we were both on stools facing the audience.”
Sandra Bullock and Keanu Reeves
Since starring in Speed together in 1994, rumors have raced over the decades that Keanu and Sandra had an off-screen romance. Alas, it was never meant to me, with Sandra denying the two were ever a couple in an interview with Esquire magazine.
“Nope…but who knows?,” she said. “Keanu’s a guy who, I feel like, is friends with every woman he’s ever dated. I don’t think there’s anyone who has something horrible to say about him. So maybe we could have survived. I don’t know. But we didn’t have to survive anything. We just get to grow up together on parallel roads and tip our hats and meet for a dinner and try to work together. And the longer time goes on, the more in awe I am of the human being. Would I have been able to say that if he had dumped me and made me angry? Probably not.”
Still, the duo, who also co-starred in 2006’s The Lake House, are close friends, with Sandra citing Keanu’s listening skills as one of his best attributes.
The Miss Congeniality star recalled that about a year after filming Speed, she casually mentioned to her co-star that she’d never had champagne and truffles. A few days later, she told the outlet, Keanu hand-delivered those two items (and flowers), explaining, “I just thought you might want to try champagne and truffles, to see what it’s like.”
Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone
Moviegoers have Crazy, Stupid, Love for this pairing after they’ve played romantic interests in three films, including La La Land.
Though they never dated in real life, working together forged a bond between the two actors. During a Q&A session at the 2018 Telluride Film Festival, the Cruella star revealed how much Ryan meant to her and his impact on her life and career. Calling him a “dear, wonderful friend,” Emma said, “I can’t even imagine what my life would be without Ryan. She then added, “He’s so special. It makes me emotional.”
And before La La Land debuted in 2016, Emma joked around about the number of films she’s done with Ryan, telling E! News, “He has a restraining order against me now.”
“Restraining order” aside, Ryan said it was “great to work” with Emma, explaining, “I think it brings the best out of [us] because you know one another, and you are able to help each other in a way that you can’t if you’re strangers.”
John Krasinski and Jenna Fischer
Jim and Pam on The Office are one of the most beloved TV couples of all-time, with fans rooting for the Dunder Mifflin employees to be together throughout the NBC hit’s nine-year run.
Jam’s chemistry never transitioned into an off-screen romance between John and Jenna, though she did admit to the pair having “real chemistry” during a 2016 appearance on Watch What Happens Live when a caller asked how close they were.
“There’s like a real part of me that is Pam and a real part of him that’s Jim and those parts of us were genuinely in love with one another,” Jenna explained. “But in real life we aren’t totally Pam and totally Jim, so in real life we’re not the perfect match…he was like a type of spouse that I had for a long time, he was my partner and we will always be close because of it.”
John later weighed in on his costar’s headline-making comments, telling The Daily Beast, “I think we both feel it’s such an honor to be a part of that relationship. As far as how she was quoted about saying we were ‘genuinely in love,’ I think that was taken wildly out of context and I feel bad for her.”
We’ll always have the teapot.
Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence
Gaga isn’t the first co-star Bradley has been romantically linked to in the press, with his onscreen dynamic with Jennifer in movies such as Silver Linings Playbook and American Hustle sparking rumors for years.
In fact, Bradley was asked by Howard Stern in 2015, “When are you two gonna have sex? Everyone is waiting for that.” Bradley was quick to respond, “Never. It’s just not the way we are together.”
And, at the 2013 Golden Globes, when he was asked by Entertainment Tonight if they were were dating, Bradley responded, “Oh my god. That’s very funny. No, my God, no.”
Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson
They may have costarred in How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, but the pair gained a rapid number of fans rooting for them to find each other IRL after the 2006 rom-com. But it never happened.
In an interview with Howard Stern on his SiriusXM show in October 2020, Matthew revealed it simply never appealed to him to date one of his famous costars.
“I’ve always tried to keep it professional and the people I worked with, I must say, did it well,” he shared. “Maybe we had certain crushes on each other at certain times but we always just kept it professional.”
And with that, the chance for their love to blossom died, just like that love fern.
George Clooney and Julia Roberts
These A-list best friends have off-the-charts on-screen chemistry (Ocean’s Eleven, anyone?) that has extended offscreen in a purely platonic way. Just look at their giggle-filled interviews, gushing public speeches and the fact that George has lent out his coveted Lake Como home to the Roberts-Moder family for anniversary celebrations. NBD!
Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen
Along with the ball dropping on New Year’s Eve, you can always count on people wondering if the best friends and CNN’s Live From Times Square co-hosts have ever dated.
When Andy appeared on Howard Stern’s radio show, he was asked, “What is it about Anderson Cooper that keeps you from falling in love with him?” The Watch What Happens Live host replied, “I just think it’s not what our relationship is based on. We’re just friends. That’s not a part of it. I think, at this point, we know each other too well. We’re not attracted to each other in that way.”
Funnily enough, the pair first met when they were set up on a blind date over 25 years ago.
“You know when straight people know two gay guys, they’re like, ‘Oh, you guys should meet,'” Anderson said on The Tonight Show in 2017, adding that when the two had a phone call to schedule the date, he “knew within 45 seconds I was never going on a date with Andy Cohen.”
He explained that Andy “violated” a cardinal rule” when it comes to dating the CNN host: He asked about Anderson’s mother, Gloria Vanderbilt.
“I wanted to date the Vanderbilt boy!” Andy admitted. “I was excited!”
Zooey Deschanel and Joseph Gordon-Levitt
While Zooey said the pair had “so much fun” making the 2009 indie rom-com (500) Days of Summer, Joseph admitted dating his co-star and longtime friend would be “awkward” in a 2012 interview with Playboy.
“Zooey and I just think it’s funny,” he said of fans wanting them to be together. “It is funny. We’ve been friends for 10 years.”
Zac Efron and Ashley Tisdale
Before it was confirmed that the High School Musical heartthrob was dating his co-star Vanessa Hudgens, there was speculation that he was involved with their mutual best friend Ashley. His 2006 guest appearance as her love interest on The Suite Life of Zack and Cody only fueled the rumors.
Zac and Ashley still remain close to this day, with Ashley calling him her “brother/best friend,” though she did pick Zac as her worst onscreen kiss in an interview with Elle.
“It was the worst because he is like my brother,” she explained. “At the time, he was used to acting on Warner Brothers, which is CW, and we were on Disney Channel.”
She then called him out for trying to kiss her “with his tongue,” prompting her to tell him, “‘Get away from me!'”
“I closed my mouth so fast. I was like, ‘This is Disney Channel, we don’t kiss like that on Disney Channel!'” Ashley recalled. “It’s just weird when you’re so close to somebody, we’d already done a movie, I’d known him for years before,'” she said. “‘That is why it was the worst, it’s just we’re too close.'”
Corbin Bleu and Monique Coleman
While their High School Musical characters Chad and Taylor were teen sweethearts, Corbin and Monique left the Disney franchise with a life-long friendship.
The duo reunited on-screen in the 2021 Lifetime Christmas movie, A Christmas Dance Reunion, with Corbin writing on Instagram, “After 13 years it felt like coming home working and dancing with [Monique] again. Starring in a [Lifetime] Christmas movie has always been a dream of mine, but never in a million years did I think I’d get to share the screen with one of my favorite people.”
And Monique is hoping to continue working with “one of her best friends,” telling People, “I honestly pray that we get to do more things together because we have that sort of spark that Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan had, and Leo and Kate, and Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling, and all of these different couples that we’ve seen in movie after movie together. I really feel like we have that potential as well and I’d like to see that happen.”
David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson
They may have played one of TV’s most iconic will-they-or-won’t-they couples on The X-Files, but the co-stars actually didn’t get along while filming their hit Fox show.
In a 2008 interview with Metro UK, David admitted that he often fought with Gillian during the series’ initial eight-year run because, “Familiarity breeds contempt. It’s nothing to do with the other person. We used to argue about nothing. We couldn’t stand the sight of each other.”
That didn’t stop fans from wanting Mulder and Scully to get together, both on-screen and off, with a photo from their May 2021 lunch date going viral, much to David’s amusement.
“As I was leaving she was like, ‘Let’s take a photo,'” he told People. “I was told there was a big reaction to it! I never get that stuff, but it’s really cool that people are interested after all these years.”
Chris Evans and Scarlett Johansson
Avengers shippers, assemble!
While they’ve appeared in eight movies together since first collaborating on 2004’s The Perfect Score, the superhero co-stars have never hooked up IRL. But Scarlett and Chris have developed a deep comfort level with each other over the years.
“It’s really a result of 10 years of knowing somebody and being able to have a kind of intimacy with them that I think you get from just spending a lot of time with somebody and knowing their soft underbelly,” Scarlett explained of their chemistry to Entertainment Weekly in March 2020.
