Bill Nighy has set the record straight over speculation about his relationship with Dame Anna Wintour, following their joint appearance together at the Met Gala.
On Monday night, Bill and the Vogue editor – who have previously been at the centre of romance rumours – generated plenty of chat online when they were pictured walking arm-in-arm on the red carpet of the star-studded event.
After photos of the pair were shared online, several media outlets took the opportunity to suggest that this was the Oscar nominee’s way of “confirming” that he and the fashion journalist were an item.
However, in a statement to HuffPost UK, his representatives have now insisted that this is not the case.
“Bill and Anna have simply been great friends for two decades,” a spokesperson said, adding that the two “are not in a relationship”.
HuffPost UK has also contacted representatives for Dame Anna Wintour for additional comment.
While Dame Anna and Bill have had a friendship spanning a number of years, rumours first began that things between them had taken a romantic turn in August 2021, when they were pictured having dinner together in Rome.
The Love Actually star was later asked about the nature of his relationship with Dame Anna during an interview with the Telegraph.
He claimed at the time: “I’d love to answer that. But if I did, I’d be involving the readers in something very close to gossip, and I know they’d never forgive me for that.”
Check out all of the must-see photos from this year’s Met Gala red carpet here.
This article has been updated following comment from Bill Nighy’s representatives.