Taylor Swift and Taylor Lautner Teach a Masterclass on How to Be Friends with an Ex

Taylor Lautner and Taylor Swift hug onstage

(Image credit: Getty)

published 8 July 2023

Remember when Taylor Squared—Taylor Swift and Taylor Lautner, of course—were an item? Ah, the simpler days of 2009. The same name duo met on the set of the movie Valentine’s Day and dated for a few months that year; Lautner was Swift’s date to the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards—you know, the one where Kanye West infamously interrupted Swift’s speech onstage.

Taylor Swift and Taylor Lautner at the MTV VMAs in 2009

Their short-lived romance was immortalized in the breakup ballad “Back to December,” which appeared on Swift’s record Speak Now. By the end of December—not long after Swift’s birthday—the pair broke up. “It was never a big deal to begin with,” a source told People at the time. “The media made way more out of it than it is.” Busy schedules and different places of residence—Swift in Nashville, Lautner in L.A.—were blamed for the split. But just three months later, in March 2010, the exes were spotted at lunch, and that same year Swift called Lautner one of her best friends.

Taylor Swift and Taylor Lautner in a car on a date in 2009

Last night, Lautner (as well as Joey King) surprised fans in Kansas City by appearing onstage with Swift for the most recent stop of her Eras tour. Lautner and King star in the music video for “I Can See You (Taylor’s Version) (From the Vault)” off her re-recorded Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) album.

Lautner—who admitted he was nervous to be onstage—did a flip to let out his excitement, before giving us a masterclass in how to be exes: “I just want to say one thing quick,” he said, as captured in this TikTok clip. “I respect you so much. Not for the singer you are, the songwriter, the performer, but truly for the human you are.”

Taylor Swift, Joey King, and Taylor Lautner onstage at Swift's Eras tour

Lautner said he had so much fun making the music video, and continued about Swift “You are courageous, humble, you are kind, and I’m honored to know you, so thank you for having me be a part of this and being a part of my life.”

Could these two be more amicable exes?

Taylor Swift and Taylor Lautner at a hockey game

Swift also had kind words about Lautner, per Page Six: “He was a very positive force in my life when I was making the Speak Now album, and I want to say he did every single stunt that you saw in that music video,” she said. “He and his wife have become some of my closest friends, and it’s very convenient because we all share the same first name.” Yes, though Swift wasn’t the Taylor for him, Lautner did end up marrying a Taylor after all, tying the knot with the former Taylor Dome—who goes by Tay—last year. Marie Claire interviewed the new Taylor Squared for its "How Well Do You Know Your Costar?" series, where they discussed their favorite alcoholic drink, hidden talents, and more.

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Rachel Burchfield is a writer, editor, and podcaster whose primary interests are fashion and beauty, society and culture, and, most especially, the British Royal Family and other royal families around the world. She serves as Marie Claire’s Senior Celebrity and Royals Editor and has also contributed to publications like Allure, Cosmopolitan, Elle, Glamour, Harper’s Bazaar, InStyle, People, Vanity Fair, Vogue, and W, among others. Before taking on her current role with Marie Claire, Rachel served as its Weekend Editor and later Royals Editor. She is the cohost of Podcast Royal, a show that was named a top five royal podcast by The New York Times. A voracious reader and lover of books, Rachel also hosts I’d Rather Be Reading, which spotlights the best current nonfiction books hitting the market and interviews the authors of them. Rachel frequently appears as a media commentator, and she or her work has appeared on outlets like NBC’s Today Show, ABC’s Good Morning America, CNN, and more.

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