Giuliana Rancic recently shared that she has encountered her ex-boyfriend Jerry O'Connell only one time since their nearly two-year relationship ended in 2004. The television personality detailed the encounter on the latest episode of her "Bill and Giuliana" podcast, "Unfuzzing Memories."
According to Rancic, the single meeting occurred while she was working a major red carpet event, possibly the Golden Globes or the Emmys. During a brief break between interviews, she felt a tap on her shoulder and turned to find O'Connell. At the time, she had recently married her husband, Bill Rancic.
She recalled O'Connell, now 52, offering her compliments, saying she was doing and looking great and wishing her a good show. Rancic admitted that she was "still harboring feelings" about their breakup and felt he had not handled their split appropriately. She referred to O'Connell as her "first" and "only heartbreak," attributing this to the lasting emotional impact of their separation.
Rancic described feeling "very sad and devastated" for a year after the breakup, to the point where she struggled to imagine trusting or being with anyone else again. However, she also expressed gratitude towards O'Connell, stating that without their breakup, she would never have met her husband, Bill, with whom she shares a son. "I would never have met Bill had Jerry not broken my heart, so I’m actually thankful to Jerry that it didn’t work out," she confessed.
This disclosure follows recent comments Rancic made on the same podcast, where she accused O'Connell of "downplaying what [their] relationship was" in a prior conversation with Kelly Ripa. She asserted that their relationship was intense, with them being together "24/7" for a year and a half, contrary to what might be inferred from his public statements. She recounted her shock upon seeing photos of O'Connell holding hands with Geri Halliwell in London, where he was filming a movie. Rancic described this as "the most shocking moment of [her] life" and recalled O'Connell apologizing, stating he had "screwed up."
Rancic further alleged that O'Connell later returned to her apartment building to declare her the "love of [his] life" and admit to making a "biggest mistake of [his] life," despite her asking him to leave. Although they briefly reconciled, their relationship ended permanently. Rancic famously wrote in her 2015 memoir, "Going Off Script," that O'Connell broke up with her over an intercom.
She labeled O'Connell "cold as ice" and their breakup "traumatizing." These accounts come shortly after O'Connell shared his perspective on their breakup and its aftermath with Ripa on the "Let's Talk Off Camera" podcast. While Rancic recalled O'Connell telling her during their split, "Things change, but you take care, OK?" O'Connell told Ripa he did not "recall [his] exact wording." He also recounted an incident at a gym where he allegedly teased Rancic by pretending to flirt with her.
O'Connell married model Rebecca Romijn in 2007, and they have twin daughters. Rancic married Bill Rancic in 2007 and they have a son, Duke, 13.