Ellen didn’t let Selena Gomez forget what she once called Justin Bieber — and it got real awkward
Back in the day, Selena Gomez and Justin Bieber's on-and-off romance was one of the favorite topics of discussion for tabloids as well as talk show hosts! In September 2010, Gomez appeared on an episode of 'The Ellen DeGeneres Show', and during the interview, the veteran talk show host asked the 'Lose You to Love Me' hitmaker about her alleged relationship with Bieber. According to a report by Cheatsheet, Ellen DeGeneres told Gomez, “So, you’re a busy girl. You’ve got a CD out, you’ve got a clothing line, and you’re an ambassador. I don’t know how you have time to date Justin Bieber.” When DeGeneres brought up rumors of her alleged romance with Bieber, Gomez looked surprised and responded, “What? He’s little! No, he’s like my little brother. That’s weird to me.”
However, years down the lane, when Gomez returned to DeGeneres' talk show, the 67-year-old standup comedian poked fun at Gomez's 'little brother' comment regarding Bieber after the two confirmed their relationship. "He's like your little brother?... What do you have to say now?" DeGeneres asked Gomez, to which the latter replied, "I don't know. I don't know." As per Yahoo, DeGeneres asked, "Well, you were trying to hide it still, right? But now you've made it public... You went to the Vanity Fair party [together] and made me a fool." Gomez said, "No, I really didn't," meanwhile, DeGeneres claimed, "Yes, you did!"
Gomez quickly reassured, "I promise you, I didn't. He's just sweet." However, DeGeneres pushed back, exclaiming, "He is. He's as sweet as he can be. But he's not like your little brother, is he? No, he's not. And he's a fantastic guy. You can't try to hide that forever... I know you all were sneaking around, but that's crazy. You're both huge stars, and you can't hide from us."
However, Gomez still stood her ground and told DeGeneres, "I didn't lie to you. I didn't, though. I'll say that," to which DeGeneres replied, "No, you didn't blatantly lie... A little brother is not someone you want to date." At that moment, Gomez chimed in, "Well, no. That would be weird." DeGeneres echoed similar sentiments and uttered, "That would be wrong and weird in so many ways." To make things even more awkward for Gomez, DeGeneres handed her a pillow featuring Bieber's face, joking that it would keep her company while he was away on tour.
For those unfamiliar, Gomez and Bieber first sparked dating rumors in 2010 before confirming their relationship in February 2011. According to Us Weekly, they initially broke up in November 2012 but rekindled their romance in April 2013, leading to an on-again, off-again relationship for several years. The two reconnected once more in November 2017 before officially parting ways in March 2018. Following their final split, Bieber married supermodel Hailey Baldwin in September 2018, and the couple welcomed their son, Jack Blues, in August 2024. As for Gomez, she found love again with music producer Benny Blanco, and the two announced their engagement in December 2024.