Inside Emma Roberts And Garrett Hedlund's Relationship

Emma Roberts' relationship with Garrett Hedlund seemingly came out of nowhere. One week, the American Horror Story star was dating Evan Peters, and shortly after, she was spotted in Silver Lake, Calif. holding hands with the former Glamour Man of the Year. So who is he, and where did he come from?

Unlike Roberts, Hedlund isn't exactly a household name, but he is an accomplished actor with roles in films like TRON: Legacy and Kristen Stewart's ill-fated On the Road. He's also the kind of man who spent his teens hanging out at Borders Bookstore (RIP) and reading Charles Bukowski, according to a Details interview (via Us Weekly). We're not sure what that tells us about him, but it does tell us something.

The truth is that Roberts is notoriously private about her relationships. Though Hedlund told Details he has a fierce journaling hobby, sometimes writing as much as 80 pages during his trips abroad, we don't exactly get to read his innermost thoughts, either. All we've really got to go on is some tabloid speculation, but the gossip rags surely don't disappoint. Here's a look inside Emma Roberts and Garrett Hedlund's sweet relationship.

Prior to Emma Roberts' relationship with Garrett Hedlund, she had a long, passionate love affair with her American Horror Story co-star, Evan Peters. The pair's seven-year, on-and-off relationship was said to be "extreme" and "very passionate," but Us Weekly revealed that it was also "very toxic." A source claimed the couple "had the highest highs and then would not speak for days." This played out in the tabloids with a particularly scary incident in 2013, when Roberts was arrested for domestic violence in Canada.

According to TMZ, someone reported a fight in the pair's Montreal hotel room. Cops reportedly arrived to find Peters with a bloody nose and bite marks. Roberts was arrested, and Peters declined to press charges. Insiders claimed the Little Italy star wasn't the only one at fault. Allegedly, both Peters and Roberts were hitting each other, but Roberts took the heat because Peters had a visible injury. In a statement to People, a rep for the couple claimed it was an "unfortunate incident and misunderstanding," noting that Roberts was "released after questioning."

Since then, Roberts' relationships have been put under a microscope. Cue the paparazzi snapping the star crying into her boyfriend's arms and tabloid speculation about her bruised legs (which, by the way, is easy to achieve if you have light skin and do virtually anything). With Hedlund, things seem different. The press is a little less American Horror Story and a little more American love story.

It took Emma Roberts nearly walking down the aisle to discover what she did and didn't want in a relationship. A few short months after making headlines for her domestic violence arrest, People confirmed that Evan Peters had popped the question in NYC over the holidays. The pair was officially engaged — but like their relationship before, this engagement was also on and off. They first called it quits in 2015, according to E!, but didn't actually break up for good until sometime in the beginning of 2019. That March, a source told Us Weekly, "Emma and Evan were heading for a split and now are just friends. Evan has moved out. It wasn't a bad breakup."

In some respects, Roberts' relationship with Garrett Hedlund could be considered a rebound. Us Weekly broke the news that they were dating in March 2019, but Roberts was spotted kissing Peters as late as Valentine's Day. She also uploaded a photo to Instagram a couple of days later that showed off her engagement ring, though the picture was dated all the way back in December. All we know is that whenever Roberts and Peters did call it quits, she didn't wait too long to shack up with Hedlund.

Emma Roberts isn't the only one who thought she'd be walking down the aisle. Garrett Hedlund was also in a serious relationship before getting flirty with Julia Roberts' niece. The actor dated Kirsten Dunst for more than four years after meeting her in 2011 on the set of On the Road, the poorly received and oft-forgotten film adaptation of the eponymous novel by Jack Kerouac.

According to E!, the split was confirmed mere months after the couple stepped out at the 2016 Golden Globes. Just a year prior, Dunst told Town & Country (via E!) that their relationship was "going well" and they "have similar backgrounds." She was even talking about potentially having a baby, and things seemed like they were getting serious: Us Weekly reports that the pair were nearing an engagement, while the Daily Mail claimed that the couple were briefly betrothed. 

Either way, it didn't work out, but Hedlund spent years seemingly single. At least, as far as we can tell. There's little evidence of him with any other woman until he started casually hanging out with Roberts. Could it be that the pair are truly just relationship people?

Like most great celebrity relationships, Emma Roberts and Garrett Hedlund didn't meet on Raya, the dating app for the stars. Does that actually work out for anyone who isn't Amy Schumer? Tabloid sources have claimed the pair did things the traditional way: they were friends first and lovers second. It sure seems like a healthier deviation from co-workers first, albeit way less dramatic.

"Garrett and Emma have been friends, but this is new, casual, and just a couple of weeks old," a source told Us Weekly in March 2019. A separate insider — a literal eyewitness — confirmed that the star did, indeed, have his arm around Roberts during their now-infamous Silver Lake debut. 

Though Roberts looked happy in her newfound relationship, that doesn't mean she wasn't struggling with her split from Evan Peters behind the scenes. In the June 2019 issue of Cosmopolitan, she admitted, "Anything ending is hard. Losing something is hard. And the only thing I can say for that is ... I'm realizing that life is highs and lows. I'm trying to ride them out and live somewhere in the middle."

Emma Roberts and Garrett Hedlund have a very private relationship. They generally don't mention each other publicly and rarely confirm or deny tabloid rumors. This probably comes from a place of protection. In her June 2019 interview with Cosmopolitan, Roberts revealed that she struggled with all the attention her relationships have garnered in the past.

"I never want to talk about relationships I'm in or that are ending or have ended. It's hard enough to be with someone by yourself, let alone with an audience. Growing up is hard. Sometimes it makes me sad that I can't have a private moment," the actress said. "Because of Twitter and Instagram, there's a whole other element where everybody can comment on what you're doing and no one knows the real story. That's hard."

Roberts also admitted that she has a strong group of people around her that help her rally in the face of tabloid gossip. The TV star revealed that she spends "hours on the phone" with her mom, who helps her put "everything into perspective" when press is particularly bad. She also has the kind of "amazing" friends who will pop over to lie in bed and talk it out over a bottle of wine. Thankfully, Roberts' relationship with Hedlund hasn't garnered the same kind of nasty tabloid gossip as her previous relationship — at least not yet.

The tabloids claimed Emma Roberts and Evan Peters remained "friends" after their official breakup, and if that's true, it seems like it might have been a little difficult. Even though the actress appears to be happy in her own relationship, nobody wants to be antagonized by an ex. So, was Peters stoking that flame? Page Six seems to think so.

Months after calling it quits with Roberts, Peters jumped into the arms of Halsey. By November 2019, the pair ignited pregnancy rumors as the American Horror Story actor posed in front of paparazzi holding Halsey's stomach. Page Six speculates that this was an attempt to either "annoy" Roberts or cause a media frenzy. A source told the outlet, "Halsey is just being cute and provocative. That's her game."

This isn't the first time, though, that Roberts had to sit back and see something potentially upsetting. A month prior, Peters and Halsey made their red carpet debut at a party celebrating American Horror Story's 100th episode. Page Six claims that Roberts was seated at a nearby table and forced to watch the couple "making out like teenagers in front of her." An insider revealed, "Emma took the high road and didn't react."

Meanwhile, Garrett Hedlund's ex seems to be a heck of a lot more low key and respectful. Kirsten Dunst has moved on completely and welcomed a baby with her fiancé, Jesse Plemons, in 2018.

Emma Roberts and Garrett Hedlund come from two totally different backgrounds: the actress grew up on movie sets, and the actor grew up on a farm. It couldn't be more different, but they still ended up in the same place (Alexa, play Taylor Swift's "Invisible String").

In an Allure interview, Roberts revealed that she remembers being a child and sitting on the set of Erin Brockovich, which starred her aunt, Julia Roberts. "I'd run and hide in her makeup trailer and hear, 'Where's Emma? It's time for bed,'" she said. Emma was begging to audition from a very young age and landed her first major role in 2001's Blow. She was about 10 years old, and by the time she was 13, she was starring in her own Nickelodeon series, Unfabulous.

Hedlund shared the same work ethic, though he went about it a different way. In an interview with the Evening Standard, the actor admitted he was raised in rural isolation where "there were no malls, no mall scouts, no Los Angeles, no New York nearby." When he was 14 years old, he left the farm and moved to Scottsdale, Ariz. to live with his mother. There, he picked up a job as a waiter and saved tips to pay for acting coaching. Before graduating from high school, he landed modelling jobs with LL Bean and Teen magazine, then graduated early to move to Los Angeles and try acting for real.

Emma Roberts and Garrett Hedlund were together for more than a year when they found out they were expecting their first child. Us Weekly first broke the news in June 2020, and Roberts' mother, Kelly Cunningham, accidentally confirmed it on Instagram. She is, after all, going to be a grandmother.

According to E!, who captured the Instagram comments, the real tea was spilled after Us Weekly published the baby news and headlines started flying. Fans flocked to Roberts' Instagram comments section to congratulate her, and that's when Roberts' mom started thanking them for their kind comments ... even though her daughter hadn't yet shared the announcement. It's the polite thing to do, even if it's not her secret to tell.

"Thank you so much! Very excited," Cunningham reportedly wrote to one user. Another commenter, who asked if the actress was actually pregnant, got a resounding "Yes!!" It's a full-fledged confirmation. Way to spill the beans, mom. At the time of this writing, Roberts and Hedlund haven't addressed the pregnancy publicly. They don't even have photos of each other on Instagram.

A first child is a stressful time for a young couple. It's hard to know what to expect, but Emma Roberts and Garrett Hedlund are keeping the whole thing low key — just like the rest of their relationship. At the time of this writing, only Roberts' mom has addressed the pregnancy. A source that spoke to Us Weekly claimed that the couple even found out the sex of the baby, but aren't going to share it publicly yet. Sadly, there will be no Zoom gender reveal party.

Of course, Roberts and Hedlund don't owe any of us anything, especially after the world did Roberts dirty during her relationship with Evan Peters and fed into the tabloid rumors. Still, it seems like the pair are pretty casual about the pregnancy in their private lives, too. An insider told Us Weekly that they haven't picked out baby names, and both the couple and their families were "surprised, shocked, and happy at the same time." While most couples would panic at the thought of an unplanned child, you can be a little more laissez-faire when you've got a $25 million net worth.

First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes the baby in the baby carriage? Not necessarily. Emma Roberts is a modern woman who doesn't subscribe to antiquated cultural ideals. As of January 2020, both Roberts and Garrett Hedlund weren't taking things very seriously. An insider told Us Weekly that they were "having fun and enjoying each other" without discussing moving their relationship forward. At the time, they were not talking about an engagement or marriage, even though they'd been together for about a year. "Their relationship is more fun than serious," the source said. Meanwhile, Demi Lovato was making plans to tie the knot after just a few months.

A lot has changed for the couple since January, though. Mainly, the pair are having a baby. So, will they tie the knot? If they do, the kid probably won't be the reason. In a 2015 interview with Allure, Roberts spoke about her parents' custody battle and had a reported "startled response" when she found out her interviewer had a more "conventional life." She quipped, "You're married? To your children's dad? That's amazing." It just doesn't seem like a priority for this star.