Celebrity relationships are always fascinating to watch. On Instagram and in paparazzi snaps, things can look picture-perfect and like happily ever after is a sure bet. But we all know that for every celebrity relationship that goes the distance, there are probably 10 that flame out in spectacular fashion.
Sometimes those relationships involve kids and some hot-mess situations that can only be described as baby mama drama. Yes, Tristan Thompson, we are talking about you!
We should state for the record that in an ideal world, there would never be any baby mama (or daddy) drama. While the salacious details about celebrity drama are always interesting to those of us who love celebrity gossip — and this is a safe space for gossip fiends and friends, so no shade here — stories about affairs, breakups, and questionable paternity are always hot tabloid topics.
And while we are so curious about these stories, too, we do want to note that we kind of wish none of this drama had happened. For the sake of the little ones who are at the center of these complicated situations, we hope that these celebs are doing all they can to keep the drama away from the kids themselves. Let's take a look at some of the stories we do hope have a happy ending.
Brad Pitt
Few celebrity couples had bigger star power than Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. The two, who quickly built a large family, were together from 2005 to 2016, when Angelina filed for divorce. There were reports that one of the causes for the divorce was an incident between Brad and one of the children that may have involved a physical altercation (Brad has never been charged with abuse or any other criminal offense related to this incident). That was the start of an incredibly long and messy divorce process that is still ongoing and will likely cost millions before all of the details are settled and the couple is officially divorced. So messy!
Kanye West
Oh man, it's hard to know how to even talk about the current drama between Kanye West and his baby mama, Kim Kardashian. Is it a story about untreated mental illness? Is it a story about a jealous soon-to-be ex-husband who is acting out online in ways that are triggering for people who've experienced relationship abuse? Is it the story of a dad who is genuinely concerned about some of the parenting choices his ex is making? Um, yes? All of the above? Whatever it is, we hope that the couple's four beautiful children are being protected from all the drama.
Nick Cannon
Nick Cannon is one of the most prolific baby daddies in the game. He's had seven children (and No. 8 is on the way!) by five baby mamas, so it's hard to believe that there isn't some drama happening behind the scenes — especially since Nick is pretty vocal about not believing in monogamy and has said that financial support for baby mamas is conditional on her not having any other partners.
Owen Wilson
Owen Wilson is another member of the multiple baby mama club as he has three children by three different women. The drama with Owen is that the mother of his youngest child, daughter Lyla, has gone on the record saying that the star has never met his child.
"Lyla needs a father," Varunie Vongsvirates, told the Daily Mail. "It's ironic how Owen keeps getting these father roles — he's playing a father in his new movie, and he's never met his own daughter."
Brian Austin Green
Brian Austin Green is currently awaiting the arrival of his fifth child, the first with his current partner, Dancing With the Stars veteran Sharna Burgess. But Brian is still going through divorce proceedings with Megan Fox, with whom he shares three children, and he also had a nasty split with Vanessa Marcil, the mother of his first child. Following that split, Vanessa went on the record as saying that Brian hadn't seen his son Kassius for more than five years and that her son didn't even know where his dad lived. The two seem to have gotten to a better place, and Brian has a relationship with Kassius now. Good to see that there is hope for other celebs currently in messy splits!
Tristan Thompson
Tristan Thompson is a talented NBA player — and, apparently, a chronic cheater. He began dating Khloé Kardashian while Jordan Craig was pregnant with his first child, a son named Prince. Then he was discovered to have cheated on Khloé while she was pregnant with daughter True. He and Khloé moved into an on-again, off-again relationship phase, but they seemed to be back together when word came out that he'd fathered another child, a son named Theo, with another woman. He initially denied the allegations that the child was his, but was forced to fess up when DNA tests confirmed that he is the baby's father.
Tom Cruise
There are celebs who have public baby mama drama and there are celebs who almost certainly had baby mama drama but were able to keep it out of the public eye, thanks to nondisclosure agreements and private settlements. Tom Cruise is in that second camp, for sure. We may never know what happened with either of his baby mamas. Like, why did Nicole Kidman seem to get shut out of the lives of the children she shares with him? And why does Tom seem to not have any relationship with his daughter Suri (who he shares with ex-wife Katie Holmes)? These are some of the most enduring celebrity mysteries, and we're sure there was behind-the-scenes drama, but nobody has gone on record about what really went down in either scenario.
Woody Allen
Baby mama drama doesn't get much messier than the case of director Woody Allen and actress Mia Farrow. The couple's split included Mia and one of their children making allegations of sexual abuse against Woody, as well as the public revelation that Woody was involved in a sexual relationship with one of Mia's children from a prior relationship, Soon-Yi Previn, who was 22 at the time. Soon-Yi and Woody have been married for more than 20 years. Mia continues to maintain that he abused their child Dylan, a charge he strongly denies.
Charlie Sheen
Charlie Sheen's adult life has basically been one kind of drama followed by another, so it isn't surprising that he's had his fair share of baby mama drama, too. He's had custody battles with two of his three ex-wives, including a recently settled child support fight with Denise Richards after he took custody of their teenage daughters, something that Denise has said makes her feel heartbroken.
Prince Albert of Monaco
There's no drama like royal drama! Monaco's Prince Albert seems to have some current drama in his life dealing with the mysterious health concerns of wife Charlene, but his baby mama drama is a lot older than that. He has two children by two other women, both of whom had to take him to court to get him to acknowledge paternity and have made public statements questioning how their children were treated compared to the children he has with Charlene. He's also been accused of fathering another child with a third woman, but that case was dismissed due to a technicality. A right royal mess, it seems!
Richard Williams
Richard Williams is famous for being the father, mentor, and first coach of tennis stars Venus and Serena Williams. What many tennis fans might not realize is that Richard has six other children — and maybe more. One of those children from his first marriage has claimed that he is a "serial cheater" who has "between 15 and 19" kids altogether. She further alleges that he abandoned his first family and left them in poverty, even as Venus and Serena became rich and famous.
Guy Ritchie
Any relationship with a major pop diva like Madonna has the potential to end in drama, and that's exactly what happened for British director Guy Ritchie. The couple divorced in 2008 but later had a bitter custody squabble that resulted in Guy gaining full physical custody of their son Rocco, who stated that he no longer wanted to tour with his mom.
Rob Kardashian
Khloé isn't the only Kardashian to be in the middle of some baby mama drama. Rob Kardashian and his ex-girlfriend Blac Chyna are parents of daughter Dream and currently share custody. When the two first split, things were ugly as they fought publicly on social media. Rob shared revenge porn pictures of Chyna without her consent, and she withheld custody of Dream from him in response. Things seem to have settled down now, and although Rob is largely out of the public eye these days, there are plenty of pictures of Dream on various Kardashian social media accounts, so it seems like she is getting to grow up with her many cousins.
Travis Barker
When he isn't busy engaging in PDA with fiancée Kourtney Kardashian, Travis Barker is a dedicated dad to his kids with ex-wife Shanna Moakler. Travis and Shanna's relationship has been tense, though, with the kids opting to live with him and sometimes taking to social media to criticize their mom's parenting and relationship choices.
Future
Rapper Future and singer Ciara have one child, son Future, together. After the couple split, and while they were in the middle of a tense custody dispute, Ciara found love with NFL star Russell Wilson. Future objected to Russell playing a role in his son's life and called Ciara "a controlling b—-" and criticized her parenting choices publicly, resulting in her filing defamation lawsuits against him. He countersued her, and it was all very messy and super public.
