The Try Guys company announced that they have terminated Ned Fulmer as of Sept. 28 due to his affair with one of the producers. The particular image that Ned portrays made the news came as a huge surprise to fans.
However, with even more accounts of celebrities cheating on their partners, it shouldn’t come as a surprise when these scandals are brought to light. We should remember that these celebrities are human and are susceptible to acts of dishonesty, despite their famed status.
Similarly, an Instagram model revealed on TikTok that she was in a relationship with Adam Levine during his marriage with the pregnant,former Victoria’s Secret model Behati Prinsloo. Tristan Thomspon cheated on his past partner, Khloe Kardashian, on multiple accounts. Beyonce, while releasing “Lemonade,” famously revealed that Jay-Z had cheated on her as well.
With these existing cheating scandals, they shouldn’t be a surprise since cheating happens frequently among all people, celebrities and non-celebrities alike. In a 2021 survey by Health Testing Centers that polled 441 people, over 46% of the participants in a relationship reported that they had affairs. While this doesn’t mean that cheating will happen in every relationship, these statistics reveal that there’s still a high possibility for anyone, even a celebrity figure, to be unfaithful to their partner.
For marriages, 15% of married women and 25% of married men have had extramarital marriages according to the national survey conducted by the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy. The numbers are significantly smaller but still present the possibility for unfaithfulness. With the existing multitude of celebrity relationships and marriages, their relationships are still represented in this poll and there is no reason to exclude them from these statistics.
What makes these imperfect celebrity relationships so shocking is their glorified online presence.
However, we also have to keep in mind that the world of social media often presents picture-perfect yet disillusioned ideals of a person and relationships. Celebrities have the power to curate how they portray their relationships.
Ned Fulmer is a perfect example of this phenomenon. Fulmer was specifically praised by many of his fans for his online presence — depicting himself as a loving father and wholesome husband. Despite his media personality, he, like all other celebrity figures, is a human being capable of hurting his loved ones.
The public’s collective investment in social media relationships has generated expectations for couples, both celebrity and non-celebrity users, to publicize their relationships online. This practice is harmful because it perpetuates unrealistic relationship standards.
It’s important to realize the realities of these famed relationships. It is only then when we challenge ourselves to humanize our perception of celebrities to avoid believing in unrealistic relationship standards.
The Instagram posts of celebrities showcasing romanticized depictions of their partner only represent a small part of their relationship. It is crucial to understand that relationships aren’t always smooth sailing and that celebrities portray unrealistic relationship standards and thus pressure the public to follow.
Online depictions of relationships, especially from well-known celebrities, should not be taken just for what is being shown. While it may be shocking to read that your favorite celebrity couple is either recovering from or ending their relationship due to dishonesty, remember that these famed individuals are just as flawed as the rest of us.
Skylar Paxton is an Opinion Intern for the fall 2022 quarter. She can be reached at paxtons@uci.edu.