Lupita Nyong’o Addresses Dating Life After Joshua Jackson Split

After recently parting ways with Joshua Jackson, Lupita Nyong’o is opening up about her personal life and where she stands when it comes to dating again.

The Oscar-winning actress was first romantically linked to the "Dawson’s Creek" star in October 2023, shortly after his split from Jodie Turner-Smith. Jackson had been married to Turner-Smith for four years, and the former couple shares a daughter, Juno.

At the time, Lupita Nyong’o was also dealing with her own heartbreak, having recently ended a tumultuous relationship with sports commentator Selema Masekela.

In a new interview with Harper’s Bazaar UK, the "Black Panther" star addressed questions about whether she’s ready to re-enter the dating scene--and her rescue cat, Yoyo, is the one to be thanked.

“My love for my cat is singular,” she said. “If I’m ever so lucky to be in a romantic relationship again, it’ll be because of him."

She added, "I was ready to shut that door and lock it and bolt it. He has ensured that my heart remains open.”

What’s remarkable about Lupita Nyong’o’s new romance is her lifelong fear of four-legged felines.

It wasn’t until John Krasinski approached her to star in this summer’s prequel to his horror franchise, "A Quiet Place: Day One," that she had to confront her fear head-on, as her character has a service cat.

To prepare for the role, Nyong’o underwent immersive therapy, which required her to spend hours petting cats. Since then, she has embraced her newfound confidence and hasn’t looked back.

In October, Lupita Nyong’o revealed that she and her boyfriend, Selema Masekela, had ended their relationship. The breakup, which has been described as "messy" and "traumatic," became public when she shared a deeply personal post on Instagram in October.

"At this moment, it is necessary for me to share a personal truth and publicly dissociate myself from someone I can no longer trust," she wrote on Instagram at the time, per People. "I find myself in a season of heartbreak because of a love suddenly and devastatingly extinguished by deception."

The "Black Panther" star continued, "I am tempted to run into the shadows and hide, only to return to the light when I have regained my strength enough for me to say, 'Whatever, my life is better this way.' But I am reminded that the magnitude of the pain I am feeling is equal to the measure of my capacity for love."

The split shocked fans who had seen the couple together at various events and believed their relationship to be strong. However, Nyong’o’s candidness about the situation shed light on the complexities behind the scenes, making it clear that the breakup was anything but smooth.

"And so, I am choosing to face the pain, cultivating the courage to meet my life exactly as it is, and trusting that this too shall pass," she continued to write on Instagram. "The promise, they say, is that a tender heart is what gives birth to fearlessness. I hope it’s true."

The actress added, "I share this to keep it [100], and hoping that the knowledge of my experience might be useful to someone else out there experiencing the grip of heartbreak who is poised to try and escape from the pain and miss out on the wisdom that comes from it. Let’s face our pain so we don’t spread it."

It appeared that Joshua Jackson played a significant role in helping Lupita Nyong’o heal from her heartbreak.

The two seemed blissfully happy when they were spotted vacationing together in Mexico in March 2024. By June, Jodie Turner-Smith, Jackson’s ex-wife, even commented on the situation, expressing that she was glad to see her former husband doing well.

However, by September, split rumors began swirling when Joshua attended the premiere of "Grotesquerie" alongside German model Nastassja Roberts.