Jennifer Aniston‘s first hand experience with infidelity rumors within her marriage to Brad Pitt influenced her decision to shut down ongoing Barack Obama romance claims, according to sources who say the actress feared that staying silent would only ‘add fuel to the fire’.
Speculation that the Friends star, 55, was romantically linked to the married former president, 63, has been swirling amid rumors that his marriage to Michelle Obama is headed for divorce
However, a resurfaced clip from October revealed how The Morning Show star denied the claims, with Jennifer telling Jimmy Kimmel at the time that the rumor was ‘absolutely untrue.’
After Michelle, 61, failed to attend both Jimmy Carter’s funeral and Donald Trump‘s inauguration – leaving Barack to attend solo – the video of Jennifer setting the record straight started recirculating.
Now, insiders have shed light on what made the star choose to break her pattern of refusing to comment on rumors.
‘Jen was going to have her people either not respond or give a “no comment,” but she thought that would add fuel to the fire,’ a source exclusively revealed to DailyMail.com.
Jennifer Aniston ‘s first hand experience of infidelity rumors within her past marriage to Brad Pitt is why she shut down ongoing Barack Obama romance claims, sources tell DailyMail.com
Speculation that the Friends star was romantically linked to the married former president, 63, has swirled amid rumors that his marriage with Michelle Obama is headed for divorce
‘She decided to shut it down before it could get even more out of hand.’
The insider noted that Jennifer has previously ignored the many surreal claims throughout her career, but knowing the rumors might upset Michelle made her speak up.
‘She barely knows Obama, let alone is dating him,’ the insider continued. ‘She told friends that after all these years of being in the spotlight, this has to be the most bizarre piece of gossip she has ever heard about herself.’
The source added: ‘She truly doesn’t know how people come up with this stuff out of nowhere. More than being concerned about it, she’s totally baffled.
‘However, Jen’s upset for Michelle because she’s seen stories about the Obamas’ marriage being on the rocks and she knows first hand what it is like to be at the center of stories like that.’
DailyMail.com has contacted reps for Jen for comment.
Brad famously ended his marriage to the Horrible Bosses actress in 2005, after meeting Angelina Jolie on the set of Mr. & Mrs. Smith.
In the years that followed, he and Jolie made comments that appeared to confirm that their relationship started while the actor was still married to Jennifer.
The Troy actor and Angelina were then together for 11 years before their marriage came to its own explosive end in 2016.
The source explained: ‘Jen’s upset for Michelle because she’s seen stories about the Obamas’ marriage being on the rocks and she knows first hand what it is like’
Brad famously ended his marriage to the Horrible Bosses actress in 2005 after meeting Angelina on the set of Mr. & Mrs. Smith (pictured together in 2014)
In the years that followed, the now-split couple made comments that appeared to confirm that their relationship had started while the actor was still married to Jennifer (pictured in 2012)
Jennifer made her attempt to shut down the Barack rumors last year during an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live!
