Hailey Bieber is once again speaking out about the long-standing feud rumors between her and Selena Gomez. The 28-year-old Rhode Beauty founder addressed the narrative in a new interview, making it clear she wants nothing to do with the drama. The speculation, which has followed both women for over a decade, stems from their shared romantic history with pop star Justin Bieberwhom Hailey married in 2018.
What Hailey said in the new interview
In a cover interview for WSJ. Magazine’s Innovators Issue, published on Tuesday, October 14, Hailey expressed her frustration with the situation. “It’s always annoying being pitted against other people,” she said. “I didn’t ask for that.” The model, who welcomed her son Jack Blues with Justin in August 2024, also added, “When people want to see you a certain way and they’ve made up a story about you in their minds, it’s not up to you to change that.”
The ‘shady’ comment and publicist intervention
The interview was conducted as Hailey’s brand, Rhode, launched in Sephora, where Gomez’s successful Rare Beauty line is also sold. When asked if she felt competitive, Hailey replied, “I think there is space for everybody.” However, she followed it with a comment that some readers found shady: “I don’t feel competitive with people that I’m not inspired by.” When the interviewer pressed, asking if she was nervous about shoppers comparing the two brands, her publicist instructed her not to respond. Reps for Hailey later told Page Six that none of her comments were about Selena Gomez directly.
A history of the public narrative
The narrative began after Hailey married Justin in 2018, shortly after his final breakup with Gomez. The ‘Love On’ singer, 33, who just married Benny Blanco on Sept. 27, had an on-again, off-again relationship with Justin for years. Back in January 2016, after Justin posted a photo of himself kissing Hailey, Gomez told Rolling Stone, “Honestly, what I would love to be printed is that I am so beyond done with talking about that, and him.“
From a public truce to unfollowing again
The feud narrative has persisted, even after both women made public attempts to end it. They famously posed for viral photos together at the Academy Music Gala in October 2022, and the ‘Only Murders in the Building’ star once publicly asked her fans to “stop” cyberbullying Hailey. For a time, there was an online peace: Hailey “liked” Gomez’s engagement announcement, and Selena returned the favor for Hailey’s Vogue cover. However, in June, fans noticed the two were no longer following each other on Instagram. Hailey has previously expressed her exhaustion with the topic, telling Bloomberg’s The Circuit in June 2023, “I hate it… it’s so disappointing that people still behave this way over a man.”
