Jennifer Aniston has had a legendary career in television and film—one which began with her iconic role as Rachel Green on Friends, which earned her an Emmy and a Golden Globe, and has culminated in dozens of hit movies.
She has also had massive success outside of the industry, with her LolaVie hair care brand and various other ventures. So, no, Aniston cannot be defined by the high-profile relationships she’s been part of in her life—but sometimes it’s just fun to reminisce.
Ahead, a walk down the memory lane of the actor’s love life.
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Justin Theroux (2010–2018)
Aniston’s last known serious relationship was with actor Justin Theroux. The two first met in 2007 and reconnected in 2010 on the set of Wanderlust. Soon, they began a whirlwind romance which saw them move in together by August 2011. They married in an intimate ceremony at their Bel Air, California, home on August 5, 2015.
In 2018, they released a joint statement announcing their decision to separate. “In an effort to reduce any further speculation, we have decided to announce our separation,” they said. “This decision was mutual and lovingly made at the end of last year. We are two best friends who have decided to part ways as a couple, but look forward to continuing our cherished friendship.”
The two have indeed remained close friends and have publicly supported one another and cheered each other on since.
In a raw interview with Elle in 2018, Aniston reflected on her marriages to Theroux and Brad Pitt.
“My marriages, they’ve been very successful, in [my] personal opinion,” she said. “And when they came to an end, it was a choice that was made because we chose to be happy, and sometimes happiness doesn’t exist within that arrangement anymore.”
Aniston continued, “Sure, there were bumps, and not every moment felt fantastic, obviously, but at the end of it, this is our one life and I would not stay in a situation out of fear. Fear of being alone. Fear of not being able to survive. To stay in a marriage based on fear feels like you’re doing your one life a disservice.”
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John Mayer (2008–2009)
The actor and the singer met at an Oscars party in early 2008 and dated off and on for about a year.
“It’s funny when you hit a place in a relationship and you both realize, we maybe need to do something else, but you still really, really love each other,” Aniston said in an interview after their split, “It’s painful. I deeply, deeply care about him; we talk, we adore one another. And that’s where it is.”
In a 2010 Playboy interview, Mayer said of the relationship, “We just have a regard for each other’s feelings that is pretty intense. It’s been a deep relationship, and it’s no longer taking place at all.”
He also asked the interviewer, “Have you ever loved somebody, loved her completely, but had to end the relationship for life reasons?”
Vince Vaughn (2005–2006)
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Fresh off her split from Brad Pitt, Aniston began dating costar Vince Vaughn as they filmed The Break-Up. In an interview years later, she credited him with bringing her back to life following her highly publicized divorce (which included Pitt quickly moving on with Angelina Jolie).
“I call Vince my defibrillator,” she said in a 2008 interview. “He literally brought me back to life. My first gasp of air was a big laugh! It was great. I love him. He’s a bull in a china shop. He was lovely and fun and perfect for the time we had together. And I needed that. And it sort of ran its course.”
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Brad Pitt (1998–2005)
Ah yes, Brad Pitt.
The actors met through their managers in 1994, but didn’t go on their first date until 1998. The following year, they made their red-carpet debut at the 51st Emmy Awards, and announced their engagement that November at a Sting concert.
The pair married in lavish Malibu ceremony near the ocean on July 29, 2000. And the next year, Pitt made a hilarious guest appearance on Friends’ Thanksgiving episode, where he played a character who hated Aniston’s Rachel Green.
In 2004, Aniston said in an interview that she was ready to have children with Pitt, but around the same time, rumors began swirling that he had developed a close relationship with his Mr. & Mrs. Smith costar Angelina Jolie.
In January 2005, Aniston and Pitt announced they would be divorcing after almost five years of marriage. “We would like to announce that after seven years together we have decided to formally separate,” they said in a statement at the time. “For those who follow these sorts of things, we would like to explain that our separation is not the result of any of the speculation reported by the tabloid media. This decision is the result of much thoughtful consideration. We happily remain committed and caring friends with great love and admiration for one another. We ask in advance for your kindness and sensitivity in the coming months.”
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Tate Donovan (1995–1998)
Soon after actor Tate Donovan split from Sandra Bullock, he and Aniston began dating. They went strong for over two years, and in 1998, just as they had broken up, he was cast as her character Rachel Green’s love interest on Friends.
“It was just six episodes. I mean, only because we were breaking up. We were like, ‘Hey, can we not keep doing this? ’Cause this is really painful and tough,’ ” Donovan recalled in a talk with Us Weekly in 2018.
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Adam Duritz (1995)
The actor and the Counting Crows frontman met through mutual friends and dated briefly following her split from Daniel McDonald. Duritz would more famously go on to date Aniston’s Friends costar Courteney Cox.
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Daniel McDonald
At the height of her Friends success, Aniston was in a relationship with fellow actor Daniel McDonald. They were together from 1990 until 1995. Sadly, McDonald died of cancer in 2007.
“He was my first love—five years we were together,” Aniston told The New York Times in 2015. “He would have been the one. But I was 25, and I was stupid. He must have sent me Justin [Theroux] to make up for it all.”
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Charlie Schlatter (1990)
Aniston played older sister Jeannie to Schlatter’s Ferris on NBC’s Ferris Bueller, a short-lived series based on Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. The two had a brief relationship while filming the sitcom.
