Who is Chelsea Handler's 'baby'? Comedian clarifies as her social media blows up with dating rumors after Jo Koy breakup
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Comedian Chelsea Handler took to her Instagram Stories and addressed rumors that she had a new boyfriend on Wednesday, September 26.
The 48-year-old comedian denied having a new lover after appearing to unveil a new relationship on social media by posting a cozy-looking photo and a John Mayer reference.
Handler previously appeared on camera giving the unidentified man a cheek kiss as he gave her a bear embrace on her Instagram Story.
The stand-up captioned the image, "This is my baby. He is full of love and positivity and his body is my wonderland," seemingly alluding to John's 2001 single, 'Your Body Is a Wonderland'.
"I love my baby and now I go back to work," the comedian said, mentioning that she would be appearing at New York City's Beacon Theatre over the weekend.
Later on Wednesday, however, Handler returned to Instagram to clarify that the man in the picture is NOT her boyfriend but rather the bartender close to the accommodation she used when visiting Mallorca, Spain.
Handler explained: "Baby doesn't mean boyfriend. Baby means he is my baby because he made me so many drinks. I can't believe I have to clarify things like this."
She further added: "I did not announce new boyfriend on Instagram. That man is a bartender right next door to my house in Mallorca and that's why he's my baby."
Prior to her 'baby' Chelsea Handler dated actor and comedian Jo Koy
The "baby" confusion occurred barely over a year after Handler and actor-comedian Jo Koy called it quits on their relationship in June 2022 -- Handler and Koy became Instagram official in September 2021, per E! News.
Before their first anniversary, the couple shared a video on Instagram explaining why they had broken up. According to the former 'Chelsea Lately' host, the ex-couple "decided together that it is best for us to take a break from our relationship right now."
Handler captioned the photo, "I know many of you were invested in our love, and I wanted to express to you how much that meant to both of us. How much it still means. And how much I now believe in love for each one of us."
"This is not an ending. It's another beginning and it's a comfort to know that I am still loved and love this man the way the sun loves the moon and the moon loves the sun," Handler added.
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Later in December 2022, the comedian discussed the "difficult" split in detail on a candid episode of the 'Brooke Shields' Now What?' podcast, per PEOPLE.
She reminisced on the breakup at the time, saying, "I really believed that this was my guy. I thought, 'Oh my God, I won.' Like I got everything. I have my career, I have respect, I have my family, I have so many friends, I have all of these things. And then I thought this was gonna be the person I spend my life with."
"Towards the end of the relationship, it just became clear that this was not my person," Handler continued. "There were just some behaviors that we couldn't agree on…"
Handler further added: "It felt to me like I would have to abandon myself, which maybe I would have been OK to do if I were 20 or 25, but I wasn't willing to do that. No matter how much I loved this person — and I loved him so much — I was not going to abandon myself."