It’s been more than a year, but Jennifer Aniston’s love life is officially back on the menu for celebrity gossip fans.
The 50-year-old actress, who split from husband Justin Theroux in February 2018, has been largely out of the gossip circuit other than some fizzled rumors of a reunion with Brad Pitt. That changed this week when Jen was photographed on an outing in West Hollywood with an unidentified man. The two shared what Hollywood Life described as a “sweet embrace” before the man planted a kiss on Jen’s cheek and wrapped his arm around her waist.
This marks the first time that Jennifer Aniston has been romantically linked to anyone since splitting with Theroux, a time she’s kept busy with work, including starring in the Netflix original film, Murder Mystery .
As a source told Hollywood Life , Jennifer is happy and not too focused on romance.
“Jennifer is in a good place right now after her split from Justin Theroux and it has nothing to do with a relationship,” the source said. “She is really happy and she isn’t focused on anyone or anything other than herself and work. She keeps herself surrounded by a very small group of long, loyal friends and that’s it. She’s so happy that she’s got her new show coming out and the Netflix movie have found success, but she’s not putting energy into dating or men right now.”
The picture of Jennifer Aniston and the mystery man sharing a kiss drew plenty of attention on social media, with many sharing the snap and speculating about what could be going on in her famous love life.
Jennifer Aniston hugs and kisses a mystery man after enjoying dinner with friends: The pair canoodled as they waited for valet to bring their cars. It’s been 17 months since the beautiful actress split up with husband Justin Theroux and she has been… https://t.co/gK2NG3rVnK pic.twitter.com/ef4cDUaB1R
— RushReads (@RushReads) July 12, 2019
But as consumers of celebrity rumors may know, the “mystery man” and “mystery woman” stories don’t always pan out. Back in 2013, the rumor mill was sent churning into overdrive with speculation that Justin Timberlake was cheating on Jessica Biel after being spotted with a blonde described as a “mystery woman.” As Grantland noted, the speculation started when Justin was spotted leaving a party at Philadelphia’s Sigma Sound Studios with the beautiful woman trailing close behind him.
She didn’t remain a “mystery woman” for long. His date for the evening later took to Twitter to reveal herself as Caitlynn Timberlake — Justin’s cousin. Caitlynn said that the gossip was hurtful to Justin and Jessica, and annoying because “the truth is they’re very much in love and are talking about starting a family next year.”
Jennifer Aniston hasn’t spoken publicly about her mystery man, who remained unidentified through the rush of celebrity news coverage this week.