What's going on with Kristen Stewart? The internet has been asking for the last week, ever since the Sunday Mirror quoted the actress's mother, Jules Stewart, confirming the widely circulated rumour that Kristen is dating her assistant, Alicia Cargile.
From there, the whole thing spiraled as Jules denied the quotesto Us Weekly; the reporter who talked to Jules doubled down and offered to post the audio of their interview.
The back-and-forth has brought up fascinating issues, like in a story by Buzzfeed's Kate Aurthur that discusses the tough question: Can someone "out" an actress if it's fairly obvious that she's in a relationship with a woman? (Stewart and Cargile have been photographed closely together for months.) But ultimately, the discussion is one that the actress would rather us not have in the first place.
That's because there's no one who hates fame as much as Kristen Stewart hates fame - especially when it comes to her personal life, which she is loathe to discuss. Back when Stewart was one of the biggest movie stars in the world thanks to the Twilight movies, she always looked miserable on any red carpet. She was never shy about how much she hated being a celebrity, especially in the glare of the rabid Twilight fan base.
"Fame is the worst thing in the world," she told U.K. Harper's Bazaar, adding, "Having that much human energy thrust at you and then being critically analysed is obviously disarming."
Kristen Stewart's mum denies saying her daughter is dating Alicia Cargile, left. Photo / Getty
Let's recall that she has good reason to despise fame: Stewart was thrust into a particularly intense spotlight early on when she started dating her Twilight co-star Robert Pattinson when the movies started filming around 2008. The "Twihard" fandom was obsessed and chronicled every move they made. They were a very private couple at first, and only confirmed they were dating by accident in 2011, when she let it slip to British GQ that "my boyfriend is English." When the reporter asked her to elaborate on that, Stewart replied: "So much of my life is so easily Googled. I mean, it's like, come on guys, it's so obvious."
Still, that was nothing compared to the online frenzy that hit in July 2012 when the paparazzi caught Stewart cheating on Pattinson with Rupert Sanders, the married director of her Snow White and the Huntsman film. In a rare move, she released a devastated statement to People with an apology to Pattinison ("I love him, I love him, I'm so sorry").
She and Pattinson split for good in 2013. He's now engaged to British singer FKA Twigs, and Stewart has remained fairly under the radar while getting strong reviews for her acting post-Twilight. She starred in Still Alice and got raves for her performance in Clouds of Sils Maria; in February, she became the first American actress to win the best supporting actress prize at the Cesar Awards, the French equivalent to the Oscars.
Kristen Stewart speaks at the Women in Film 2015 Crystal And Lucy Awards. Photo / AP
Now, her private life is the center of attention once again. She notably skipped the red carpet while attending the Women in Film 2015 Crystal and Lucy Awards this week, but that won't stop the questions for long. Just a reminder that no matter how many awards Stewart racks up, and how far removed she is from the Twilight franchise, people will always be especially invested in any relationship she's in.
