Instead of becoming America’s sweethearts, some celebrity couples prompt disbelief and disgust. It may be because of an age discrepancy, cheating or just plain incompatibility. Here are the top 11 star pairs that caused a collective sigh of relief when it was announced they had split.
11. Brody Jenner and Avril Lavigne
Everyone was surprised when Avril hooked up with Brody in 2010. They dated for two years, but their subsequent breakup was for the best since everyone agreed Avril should keep her distance from the whole Jenner-Kardashian family craziness. Avril has since moved on to Nickelbacks’s lead singer, Chad Kroeger.
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10. Kim Kardashian and Kris Humphries
No one is quite sure what to make of the couple’s blink-and-you’ll-miss-it marriage, but what is certain is that Kim was eager to use his celebrity to promote her own career. Kim rode the wave of publicity over her faux marriage to even more publicity. Meanwhile, Kris moped around for about two minutes and then moved on to a new girlfriend who looks suspiciously similar to Kim.
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9. Anne Hathaway and Raffaello Follieri
Anne Hathaway and boyfriend Raffaello Follieri seemed like a match made in heaven. He was charming and wealthy, and she was famous and beautiful. This glamorous public image was derailed when it was revealed that Follieri was a fraudster and an embezzler. After his thieving ways were exposed, Anne received both support and scorn. Whether they were cheering her on or roasting her, everyone agreed that she was better off without the felonious real estate magnate.
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8. Courteney Cox and David Arquette
She was one of the most beautiful women on television, while he was an ordinary looking guy whose only asset was his sense of humor. Their marriage quickly devolved into an exhausting struggle. David’s alcohol and drug problems sapped the romance out of their love life. Courteney finally separated from David in 2010, saying that she was tired of being his mother. She moved on by dating her “Cougartown” co-star Brian Van Holt, and David finally went to rehab.
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7. Tiger Woods and Elin Nordegren
Even now, it’s hard to believe that Tiger blithely cheated on his beautiful Swedish wife with dozens of women. After enduring the humiliating revelations of Tiger’s string of mistresses, no one blamed Elin for jumping ship on her 6-year marriage to the golfing legend. In fact, millions of people were thrilled she had the courage to leave his cheating behind. Tiger emerged from the scandal with his reputation in tatters. Elin emerged with a hefty divorce settlement.
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6. Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson
Hordes of screaming “Twilight” fans were devastated after the publication of photos of Kristen Stewart cheating on Robert with her “Snow White and the Huntsman” director, Rupert Sanders. Other observers were relieved that the annoying couple had finally split, so they would no longer have to see them splashed all over the tabloids.
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5. Mila Kunis and Macaulay Culkin
Perhaps the weirdest couple on this list, Mila and Macaulay managed to mostly keep their relationship under the radar for eight years. The pasty “Home Alone” star was a poor match for the gorgeous Mila Kunis. Legions of infatuated men rejoiced when the two finally broke up in 2011. Sadly for them, Mila went off the market almost immediately when she hooked up with someone much more her style: Ashton Kutcher.
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4. Britney Spears and Kevin Federline
One of the most annoying and overexposed star couples of all time, the train wreck that was Britney and Kevin came to its inevitable end in 2006 when she filed for divorce. The ensuing custody battle filled tabloid headlines for months. Even gossip lovers wished by the end of the year that the pair hadn’t had any children.
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3. Sandra Bullock and Jesse James
Even the cattiest among us couldn’t help but feel sorry for Sandra after “In Touch” revealed that her husband had cheated on her with a tattoo model. After at least two other affairs came to light, Sandra ditched her unfaithful hubby in favor of her newly adopted son, Louis. Clearly, she only has room for one man in her life.
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2. Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez
From the start, Bennifer was a bizarre match. Down-to-earth, Boston boy Ben and diva JLo simply didn’t go together. The enormously unpopular supercouple split in 2004 after an exhausting media feeding frenzy. Ben went on to start a family with another Jennifer (Garner), and J.Lo embarked on a 6-year marriage with salsa singer Marc Anthony.
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1. Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes
Possibly the creepiest high-profile celebrity relationship to ever grace Hollywood, Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes (more popularly known as TomKat) raised eyebrows from the moment Cruise leaped maniacally over Oprah’s couch while professing his love for the brunette beauty. Katie seemed star struck by her new husband, but the 17-year discrepancy in the pair’s ages and rumors that the marriage had been arranged to provide a bevy of little Scientologists did not impress the public. Fed up with having every important life decision dictated to her by the church, Katie divorced the diminutive movie star in 2012.