A public divorce tends to turn into a public affair.
Long before Nick Lachey started falling in love with now-wife Vanessa Lachey, the 98 Degrees singer was in a highly scrutinized relationship with Jessica Simpson. And though the Newlyweds stars were only married for three years, their as-seen-on-TV union had a long-lasting impact.
In Netflix's new series The Ultimatum, which began streaming on April 6, Vanessa reflected on the early years of her romance and the idea that she was getting what was left of him.
"He was literally in a very public marriage and a very public divorce, and I had to go through all that s--t very publicly and it was very hard for us," she told the contestants in episode six. "It wasn't until the moment that he was like, ‘I'm gonna let it go,' and I said, ‘I'm gonna let it go,' and we truly committed to each other."
Nick agreed with his wife's recollection adding: "I think we got perspective."
Which is what they were hoping to offer to The Ultimatum's stars—six long-term couples who disagree about whether marriage should be their next step.
When Vanessa, who serves as co-host alongside her husband of 10 years, opened up about her own experiences, the contestants were on the verge of reuniting with their original partners after spending three weeks in a "trial marriage" with a new person.
Ultimately, Nick did find the person he could cherish for the rest of his life in the former TRL host and realized he didn't have to think twice about committing to his "What's Left of Me" co-star.
Once the pair, who began dating in 2006 as he was finalizing his divorce from Jessica, truly committed, said Vanessa, "We literally fell deeper and harder than we ever could." And that's a happy ending.
The Ultimatum (produced by Kinetic Content) is streaming now on Netflix.