Celebrity
“It Was Exactly What I Needed”: Natalie Portman Recalled How Her Viral Run-In With Rihanna Helped Her Through Her Divorce
A fun new hobby or a bit of journaling might be helpful for some when navigating a tough breakup. However, for Natalie Portman, a run-in with Rihanna was precisely what she needed to get through it.
For context, it was confirmed by People in March that Natalie had recently finalized her divorce from Benjamin Millepied following reports that he’d allegedly cheated on her.
After much speculation about their marriage, it was revealed that Natalie quietly filed for divorce from the choreographer in July last year. She and Benjamin — who met on the set of Black Swan in 2009 — were married for 11 years and share two children: Aleph, 13, and Amalia, 7.
So, just a month before Natalie’s divorce was finalized, she attended the Dior Haute Couture show in Paris, where she met Rihanna for the first time.
Video footage of the encounter shows the two superstars overwhelmed with excitement as they embraced outside the venue. “You are one of the hottest bitches in Hollywood forever,” Rih told Natalie, who replied in complete awe: “I’m gonna faint…I’m gonna blackout.”
Anyone will know it’s quite an achievement to make Rihanna feel starstruck, and now, six months later, Natalie has emphasized just how much the moment meant to her, too.
Appearing on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on Monday, the Oscar-winner said her run-in with Rih came at the perfect time amid her divorce — which, as we know now, was finalized only a few weeks after the Dior show took place on January 22.
“It was an amazing experience for me,” she said after Jimmy brought up the viral footage. “I think every woman going through a divorce should get to have Rihanna say to her that she’s a bad bitch.”
This marks the first time Natalie has addressed the split since news broke that the divorce was official.
Before this, the May December star had only ever commented on the public speculation surrounding their marriage, telling Vanity Fair in February: “It’s terrible, and I have no desire to contribute to it.”
