Nick Lachey Details His In-Flight Run-in with Jessica Simpson 20 Years After Their Divorce
Nick Lachey Details His In-Flight Run-in with Jessica Simpson 20 Years After Their Divorce
Angelique BrenesThu, May 14, 2026 at 4:44 AM UTC
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Nick Lachey; Jessica Simpson
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Nick Lachey confirmed he recently ran into ex-wife Jessica Simpson on a flight to Hawaii nearly 20 years after their divorce
The singer described the six-hour encounter as “strangely okay” and said everyone was “very very cordial, very respectful”
PEOPLE previously reported that the former couple, along with Vanessa Lachey, had “a nice conversation” during the flight
Nick Lachey is opening up about unexpectedly crossing paths with ex-wife Jessica Simpson nearly 20 years after their divorce.
The singer confirmed rumors that he recently ran into Simpson during a flight to Hawaii, while appearing on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen.
Cohen, 52, asked whether the encounter actually happened. Lachey confirmed that it did, describing the experience as “strangely okay.”
“You know it's been 20 years since… and so we haven't seen each other in those 20 years and then spent six and a half hours on a flight to Hawaii together,” Lachey said, before clarifying that by “spent” he meant they were simply in the “same vicinity.”
Nick Lachey visits SiriusXM Studios
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“Everyone was very very cordial, very respectful,” he continued, noting that his family was also on the flight. According to Lachey, Simpson was seated next to her mother, while her partner and children were elsewhere on the plane. “It was honestly fine.”
PEOPLE previously reported on the encounter in April, when a source said the former couple “had a nice conversation” during the flight from Los Angeles to Hawaii.
“They all had a nice conversation. Nick, Jessica and [Nick's wife] Vanessa,” the source told PEOPLE at the time. “It was very amicable and cordial."
Simpson, 45, and Lachey, 52, were married from 2002 to 2006 and famously starred together on Newlyweds: Nick and Jessica before their split.
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Lachey later married Vanessa Lachey, 45, in 2011. The couple share three children: sons Camden, 13, and Phoenix, 9, and daughter Brooklyn, 11.
Simpson announced her separation from former NFL player Eric Johnson in January 2025 after 10 years of marriage. The former couple share daughters Maxwell, 13, and Birdie, 7, and son Ace, 12.
The “Irresistible” singer later reflected on her relationship with Lachey in her 2020 memoir, Open Book, which detailed everything from their early romance to their eventual divorce.
Nick Lachey and Jessica Simpson
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Speaking to PEOPLE at the time of her memoir's release, Simpson described Lachey as her “first love” and said she continued to have respect for him years after their split.
“We meant a lot to each other and we always will,” Simpson said. “I want to be very respectful because I married him for a reason and we were together for seven years for a reason. He has a family now and I would never say anything to disrespect that.”
Lachey and his wife Vanessa currently host several Netflix dating shows, including Love Is Blind and Perfect Match.
on People
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
