Time has changed viewers’ perception of MTV’s “Newlyweds,” and Jessica Simpson is here for it.
Simpson appeared on the reality series with her former husband, Nick Lachey. During the show’s three seasons, the actor-singer was often portrayed as a “dumb rose” caricature, while Lachey was sympathetically seen as a dutiful, if somewhat resigned, husband.
Nearly 20 years after its debut, however, “Newlyweds” has found new popularity on TikTok, with a new generation of viewers getting a behind-the-scenes look at Lachey and Simpson’s now-defunct marriage.
In an expletive-filled clip, Lachey condescendingly refers to Simpson as a “spoiled brat” and a “spoiled girl,” prompting some TikTok users to call her behavior “mentally and emotionally abusive.”
Speaking to Bustle in an interview published Thursday, Simpson was asked how she felt about the public’s initial impression of her then-husband while “Newlyweds” was on the air from 2003 to 2005.
After offering what he described as a “better late than never shrug”, he said: “It’s amazing what advertising can do.”
Simpson and Lachey separated in 2006 after about four years of marriage. In 2014, she married former NFL player Eric Johnson, with whom she shares three children: Maxwell, 11; Ace, 10 and 4 year old Birdie.
Denise Truscello via Getty Images
Still, she has said she has no regrets about “Newlyweds,” telling “The Real” last year, “I was so young, I didn’t even have control over who I was as a person.”
In her interview with Bustle, Simpson acknowledged that she, too, sees “Newlyweds” differently now than she did in the past, but also noted that the show reassures her that she’s “still that person.”
“Honestly, if Eric told me I had to do all the laundry, I’d still throw it over the rail and hiss,” she joked.
If Simpson has his way, his next project could mark his long-awaited return to music. Although she was part of the same late-1990s pop boom as Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera, she hasn’t released a full-length studio album since 2010’s “Happy Christmas,” a collection of songs from holidays
These days, he’s considering a move from Los Angeles to Nashville and is in discussions to produce a new docuseries chronicling his work in the recording studio and beyond.
As for what a new album might sound like, Simpson simply said, “I’m genderless.”
