Thankfully – perhaps not for them – we know a whole lot about celebrity romances. Even if they wanted to, it’s basically impossible for them to keep any romantic relationships under wraps due to the prying eyes of the media and the intrusive nature of the paparazzi. Sometimes they must want to smash those cameras, but they get used to it. It’s just part and parcel of being a celeb.

Nowadays it seems as if every other celebrity relationship ends in a bitter dispute. You can’t open up a gossip magazine without learning that some high-profile celebrity couple have called time on their often-brief romance. Sometimes everything comes to light. We get to know the real reasons they split. Perhaps one of them divulged all to a gossip magazine, or maybe we come to know of such things due to the media and paparazzi earning their corn. It’s unfortunate for the celebs, but for us outsiders, it makes for some seriously juicy gossip.

On occasions, celeb couples part ways due to tragic circumstances. On such occasions, you really do feel sorry for the celebs experiencing this heartache. Whether it’s due to death, addictions, destructive behavior, or other such issues, it’s never a good thing when a relationship ends in tragedy. Unfortunately, those on this list have experienced that feeling. These are 15 celeb romances that ended due to tragedy.

Rihanna And Chris Brown

Chris Brown and Rihanna were in a highly publicized romance. It was a tumultuous relationship to say the least, but Rihanna just couldn’t let Chris go. The two got together when they were teenagers. The teenage sweethearts embarked on an adult relationship, spent many years together, broke up, and then got back together again. Chris Brown has been compared to a drug that Rihanna just couldn’t give up. Long after everyone thought she should, she finally left him, although has been very vocal saying that she still cares for him and still supports him. For Rihanna, the romance ended in tragic circumstances. It was building up, coming to a head, and in the end, enough was enough. Chris has had numerous legal issues, has been to rehab, and has a serious temper. I don’t think anyone will forget that picture of Rihanna black and blue after receiving a vicious beating at the hands of her then boyfriend. He escaped with a lenient sentence, but that was that. The relationship ended in tragic circumstances for the couple.

Mike Tyson And Robin Givens

Mike Tyson’s tumultuous past has been well documented. Being the youngest heavyweight champion of all time, being labelled as being the baddest man on the planet, and having all those millions of dollars thrown at him, Mike went a little bit wild. Actually, he went more than a little bit wild, spending his cash on anything and everything and generally getting up to no good. He’d probably admit that he wasn’t in the right frame of mind when he got hitched to Robin Givens. But evidently there was some love there, as they’ve both said. Although, having said that, I don’t think people were surprised when they split. Not a lot of people would call their marriage ending a tragedy, but Mike probably would have, at the time anyway. Apparently, Givens’ mom and Givens herself were “on the prowl for a big black celebrity to marry Givens.” Tyson fitted the bill. He claims that his mother-in-law was ruthless in basically stealing millions of dollars from him. They both got Mike to hand over millions over the 11 months they were together, which was part of the reason he was broke – just part of the reason. Apparently, according to Mike, she also lied about miscarrying their baby, and she had an affair with none other than Brad Pitt. If that’s all true, pretty much their entire relationship can be constituted as a tragedy.

Dennis Rodman And Carmen Electra

Some women love that bad boy persona. That’s all well and good, but if the guy is actually a bad boy, it’s not really a firm basis for a serious relationship to be built on. When Carmen Electra and Dennis Rodman got together, people just couldn’t understand it. Carmen has said that when they first started dating, people warned her to stay away, and not to get involved with the basketball pro due to his edgy reputation. But she was fragile at the time and didn’t heed the warnings. Dennis was a gentle giant, but there was more to him than that, as she soon discovered. Their brief marriage was intense. The high points were high, but the lows were seriously low. It ended in tragedy when Carmen finally started the healing process, and realized she’d just gotten with Dennis to numb the pain. While she was dating Dennis, her mom had died of a brain tumor, and a couple of weeks after her mom’s passing, her sister died of a heart attack. She split from Dennis and was finally able to grieve.

Amy Winehouse And Blake Fielder-Civil

Singer-songwriter Amy Winehouse died young. It was a tragic way to end what was becoming a tumultuous life. Her legacy still lives on; you can’t turn on the radio without hearing one of her iconic songs. Her issues that she battled during her time in the limelight have been well-documented. She suffered from substance abuse problems and mental illness, and was at her worst around 2005. Her family thought the death of her grandmother set her off down that dark path. Others put the blame on Blake Fielder-Civil. It was around this time that she met Blake, and they subsequently got hitched. It was he who introduced her to the various drugs she was taking – he’s admitted doing so – which certainly didn’t help ease the strain of their already turbulent relationship. Amy’s family and the media blame Blake for putting her on that destructive path, one that ultimately led to the singer’s death. Death isn’t how the relationship ended though. They divorced due to adultery, with Amy clinging onto Blake, still wanting him to live with her. It was a really sorry set of circumstances.

Bobby Brown And Whitney Houston

A lot has been made about Bobby Brown and Whitney Houston’s tumultuous relationship. Pretty much the entire relationship was pretty tragic, although Bobby has said that they loved each other deeply and were seriously committed to each other. But others say differently. People blame Bobby for getting Whitney into drugs. But Bobby has revealed that someone else had done so, and that the first time he saw her do drugs was on their wedding day. That would’ve been a red flag for some, but they shared a tight bond and nothing was going to stop them sealing their relationship. But then came a seriously low point in their careers. Their careers were sinking fast, they blew whatever money they had, and started taking more and more drugs. Things also got violent between the two. They finally divorced, but by that time it was too late. Whitney’s mom has said: “She finally got rid of him, but it was too late. I blame him for the way he treated her. And he didn’t help [with her drug issues]. Damn sure he didn’t t do that. He was no help to her at all.”

David Arquette And Courteney Cox

We had become used to seeing the name Courteney Cox Arquette on our screens. That’s why when the duo announced they were splitting and subsequently divorced after 14 years of marriage, it came as a real shock to one and all. 14 years is a pretty long marriage when it comes to Hollywood standards, but it was a pretty tragic set of circumstances that led to it all ending. One of the reasons was that Courtney just got fed up with David and his “kooky” ways. She didn’t want to have to mother him anymore, and in the end, both agreed that it would be best to just let him be who he wants to be. There were also allegations of cheating, on both sides. David has admitted that he was going through issues and Courtney didn’t want to mother him. Some of these issues, which included alcoholism, landed him in a rehab facility around the time they split. It’s a sad way to end what many people thought was a rock-solid marriage.

Charlie Sheen And Denise Richards

Charlie Sheen seems to get engaged or embark on a new relationship every other week. It’s no secret that he likes female company. Throughout his time in the limelight, stories of his wild parties and his s*xual conquests have come to light. He cheats, sleeps around, and from what the world knows, is generally just a sleazy character. Knowing this, who in their right mind would attempt to tame the beast that is Charlie Sheen? Amazingly, there have been women who’ve tried. Denise Richards was one of these women. But the relationship ended in tragedy for her. They began dating in 2001 and had two daughters together. It was a really volatile relationship, which was fuelled by drugs and alcohol. When they split, it what was a messy divorce, and plenty of things came to light. Denise accused Charlie of being an alcoholic, and of domestic violence. It was a nasty very public divorce which included a long custody battle.

Ben Affleck And Jennifer Garner

Being married for 12 years is pretty good going in today’s day and age in the film industry. This couple recently split. They called off their marriage – well, Jennifer Garner did – because she just couldn’t endure watching Ben Affleck continue to go down that dark path. Jennifer reached a breaking point in 2017 when Ben’s drinking was just out of control. He was an alcoholic and a gambling addict – a toxic combination, and not someone you necessarily want around your three kids. He’s actually a pretty successful gambler, but that’s not the point. His gambling like his alcoholism, is an addiction, one he can’t shake. The couple reportedly tried to work things out in therapy, Ben went to rehab, but it was all to no avail, and Jennifer pulled the plug on what many people deemed to be a rock-solid marriage. There were rumors that Ben was also cheating on Jennifer with Lindsay Shookus, which certainly didn’t help.

Madonna And Sean Penn

It’s amazing to think that at the age of 59, Madonna’s career is still going strong. She’s been active in the industry since 1979, and although there’ve been tough times, and plenty of heartache along the way, she’s still standing. Sean Penn is still around too, and amazingly, considering their relationship ended in tragedy, the two are actually back on speaking terms and have actually been seen being quite pally with one another. You’ll understand why that’s so bizarre in a second.

Penn and Madonna got hitched in 1985. It was a highly publicized relationship, but one that was marred by numerous bouts of controversy. Penn had a temper and was prone to violent outbursts. There have been plenty of rumors that he was violent to Madonna too – including allegations of assault from those close to the singer – but the two haven’t spoken out about this. But apparently there was one horrific incident that took place, which is why their relationship ended for good. It ended in tragedy for Madonna, but if it’s true – and numerous sources do reveal it’s true – then she’s lucky to be alive. On December 28^th 1989, Penn had been drinking. He chased Madonna, bound her to a chair with twine, and then proceeded to rough her up over the next nine hours. The bound and gagged Madonna was petrified, and the ordeal eventually ended when Penn was taken away in handcuffs. She filed for divorce a week later. Apparently, Madonna’s the one who filed a report on the incident at the Malibu sheriff’s office. There are also police statements and other credible sources. But Madonna has denied that the incident ever took place. It’s a very strange state of circumstances.

Kurt Cobain And Courtney Love

Kurt Cobain and Courtney Love’s relationship was one of tragic romance. The former Nirvana frontman lived life in the fast lane, and in the end, it caught up with him. Courtney Love was on a destructive path too. Together, they were toxic. Courtney can admit to that now, having sat back and taken stock of the situation. The couple had a vice – or numerous vices: drugs. They were both heavily into drugs. It’s alleged that Love was even using drugs when she was pregnant. Cobain was battling with serious health problems, which were just exacerbated due to the drug use. He had chronic bronchitis and was in constant pain. In 1994, his health was getting worse, and he made his first suicide attempt. Months later, he took a cocktail of drugs, and took his own life. Apparently, he believed he was going to die young and was getting no enjoyment out of life anymore. Truly tragic.

Liam Neeson And Natasha Richardson

Liam Neeson’s a guy who always seems to find himself in perilous situations in his movies. But he always holds his head up high, and despite seemingly having the weight of the world on his shoulders, finds a way to get through it, often saving the day and rescuing his family. Liam has gone through numerous tragedies in his personal life, none more tragic than the death of his spouse, Natasha Richardson. Natasha was an English actress. She had quite a vast and varied filmography and was successful in her own right. The two married in 1994, and spent a very happy 15 years together. It should have been much more, but Natasha was snatched from Liam due to a tragic accident. In 2009, she had a skiing accident, suffering an epidural hematoma. The traumatic brain injury claimed her life, and the acting world lost a great actress, and Liam lost his soulmate.

Maria Shriver And Arnold Schwarzenegger

Arnold Schwarzenegger often plays the hero in his movies. Throughout the course of his various careers, he’s done some truly great things. People thought that that meant he was an exceptional human being, someone with good morals, great values. We all thought that was precisely the case. His wife must have thought that too. But all the while he was hiding a scandalous secret.

Arnold and Maria had been together for 25 years when he dropped a bombshell. He revealed that he’d had an affair and had cheated on her many years ago with their housekeeper, with whom he’d fathered a child. Maria’s world came crashing down. She moved out of the house, and served Arnold with divorce papers. That was more than six years ago, but for whatever reason, apparently, they’re still not divorced. It really is a tragic way for a relationship to end. Maria invested time and effort into the relationship, and for it to end due to such a shocking revelation is truly tragic.

Cory Monteith And Lea Michele

Lea Michele achieved a tremendous amount of fame and popularity as the star of the TV series Glee. She was part of an on-set romance with one of her co-stars, Cory Monteith. On the show, Lea was this straight-laced individual, and that’s her persona in real life too. But in Cory’s real life, things were very different. As a teenager, since the tender age of 13, Cory was battling substance abuse problems. There’d been interventions from his family, he had a stint in rehab, but evidently it didn’t have any effect. In July 2013, Cory was found dead in his hotel room. The autopsy revealed that his death was due to him taking a toxic combination of heroin and alcohol. It was an overdose and it was deemed to be accidental. It was a tragic way for the couple’s fledgling relationship to end.

Tiger Woods And Lindsey Vonn

A lot of you probably expected to find Tiger Woods on this list with his now ex-wife, Elin Nordegren. The two were married for six years in what was seemingly a happy relationship. But Tiger was cheating on Elin for the vast majority of their relationship. He was cheating on her with multiple women, and eventually everything was revealed when he came out and admitted that he was a s*x addict. He even went to rehab for the addiction. His marriage fell apart, which was tragic, but his life fell apart too. He lost millions, sponsors wanted to distance themselves from him, and his state of mind and subsequently his golfing game suffered. We all thought he had gotten back on the right track when he got with alpine ski racer Lindsey Vonn. But Tiger was still stuck in his cheating ways, if rumors are to be believed. Recently, news broke from a source that Lindsey left Tiger because she discovered he’d cheated on her. Apparently, he actually told her the news, and she packaged her bags immediately. It was a tragic way to end their fledgling relationship, especially one that seemed to be so solid.

Khloe Kardashian And Lamar Odom

Unless you’ve been living under a rock during recent years, it’s fair to assume you’ve heard all about Khloe Kardashian and Lamar Odom’s tumultuous relationship. Most of those who kept up to date with all the latest goings-on would agree that the relationship ended in tragedy. Both Khloe and Lamar would probably agree that the relationship ended in tragedy, too.

After marrying ex-NBA star Lamar Odom after just 30 days, people – including Khloe’s own family – were a little skeptical. It was a whirlwind romance, and pretty soon they became everyone’s favorite celeb couple. But around four years later, there was trouble in paradise. Lamar had started taking drugs, and self-destructed. Things came to a head when he was found unconscious in a brothel – people weren’t sure whether he was going to make it. He did pull through, but there was no saving the couple’s relationship. Khloe has said that she’ll always care for Lama and will always support him, but it’s truly tragic the way things ended.