Chelsea Handler on Jo Kay Breakup: ‘No Going to Abandon Myself’

By Jaslin Last updated Dec 29, 2022

Chelsea Handler has discussed the breakdown of her relationship with Jo Kay in an open and honest manner. The comic reflected on her breakup with her longtime friend-turned-boyfriend during an episode of the “Now What?” podcast co-hosted by Brooke Shields. the couple had dated for about a year before breaking up.

“I had a strong feeling that he was the one for me. I couldn’t help but think, “Oh my gosh, I won.” Like I got everything. I am successful in my work, I am respected in my field, I am surrounded by loved ones, and I have a large number of friends. I have all of these things.

She went on to explain that the connection had even altered her outlook on the institution of marriage, saying, “And then I believed this was going to be the person I spent the rest of my life with.” I’m not in a rush to be married, but I wasn’t opposed to the thought of it either, and the fact that he placed such a high priority on it meant that we talked about it quite a little “She went into further detail.

“And then, when the relationship came to an end, it simply became very evident that this was not the person for me,” she said. “There were just a few conducts on which we were unable to reach a consensus… It seemed to me that I would have to give up who I am, which is something that maybe I could have done when I was 20 or 25 years old, but I wasn’t willing to do it at that point in my life.

Regardless of how much I cared about this other person — and I cared for him a great deal — I was not going to give up on myself “Handler told Shields. A common friend did the honors of introducing the pair nearly two decades ago.

In September 2021, the pair made their relationship public knowledge. When asked earlier this year about his breakup with Handler, Koy responded by saying, “I’ll always champion her” on the television show Entertainment Tonight.