Who Has Tessa Thompson Dated?

From Janelle Monáe to Taika Waititi: Tessa Thompson's Rumoured Dating History Is Enviable

If you've found yourself wondering why you can't recall any of Tessa Thompson past relationships, that's because she's famously known for keeping details about her personal life private. However, when it comes to who she loves and why she's private, she did open up to Porter Edit back in 2018.

"I can take things for granted because of my family – it's so free and you can be anything that you want to be. I'm attracted to men and also to women. If I bring a woman home, [or] a man, we don't even have to have the discussion," the 37-year-old actor told the outlet. "I want everyone else to have that freedom and support that I have from my loved ones, but so many people don't." Ahead you can read everything we know about Tessa's rumoured relationships, including Janelle Monáe and Rita Ora.

Image Source: Getty / Jeff Kravitz

1. Janelle Monáe

Speculation about Janelle Monáe and Tessa's relationship began in April 2015, when Tessa appeared as a backup dancer in the singer's "Yoga" music video. The pair were then photographed for the first time together the following month at the 2015 MOCA gala. Romance rumours around the duo intensified at the beginning of 2018, after they played star-crossed lovers in the "emotion picture" version of Janelle's Dirty Computer album and attended the Los Angeles premiere of Annihilation.

During an interview with Porter Edit in June 2018, Tessa addressed the rumours head-on. "It's tricky, because Janelle and I are just really private people and we're both trying to navigate how you reconcile wanting to have that privacy and space, and also wanting to use your platform and influence," she said.

Tessa continued, "We love each other deeply. We're so close, we vibrate on the same frequency. If people want to speculate about what we are, that's okay. It doesn't bother me." Her comments led many to believe the two had been romantically involved. The actress later clarified in a tweet that "I didn't say I was in a relationship. But I said lots of other things."

Image Source: Getty / Neilson Barnard

2. Dev Hynes

The rumoured romance between Tessa and English singer Dev Hynes seemingly began in 2019, when the couple was photographed taking a stroll in Paris, attending Wimbledon in London, and shopping in New York. In early 2020, Dev and Tessa were seen cosying up at an after-party for the Sundance premiere of Sylvie's Love before sitting front row of Milan Fashion Week. It's unclear when the two fizzled out as neither ever publicly confirmed the relationship.

Image Source: Getty / Michael Kovac

3. Taika Waititi/Rita Ora

The internet went wild when pictures of Tessa getting cosy with both Taika Waititi and Rita Ora surfaced on May 23. It didn't take long for people to wonder whether or not Tessa and the new celeb couple were actually a throuple, seeing as Tessa had been photographed both nose-to-nose with Rita and in an intimate embrace with Taika. The trio was also seen in a huddle one can only describe as "a love puddle."

Rita and Taika were first romantically linked together by an Instagram post on April 21, 2021. Oddly enough, Tessa was also included in the same Instagram gallery, which the singer had captioned, "Good times, memories, random things on my phone and the ones I love." Further confirmation of Rita and Taika's relationship came after the duo attended the Sydney premiere of RuPaul's Drag Race Down Under together on April 30. Tessa and Taika previously worked together on 2017's Thor: Ragnarok and reunited for the upcoming Thor: Love and Thunder.

Image Source: Getty / Alberto E. Rodriguez / Bryan Bedder

1. Janelle Monáe

2. Dev Hynes

3. Taika Waititi/Rita Ora

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