Taylor Russell’s New Romance 'a Huge Blow' for Harry Styles (EXCL)
Fans spotted Taylor Russell hanging out with Michael B. Jordan in London on March 9, kicking off rumors of a romance that a source exclusively tells Life & Style is true to some degree, as they’ve been hooking and they’ve been having a great time in each other’s company, though one person who’s definitely not cheering them on is Taylor’s ex Harry Styles.
Since calling it quits in May 2024 after about a year together, the source says “Harry really hasn’t moved on since their split,” as, “apparently, Taylor was the one who initiated it and that has never happened to him before.”
The One Direction alum, 31, began his relationship with Taylor, 30, in much the same way she got started with the Creed star, 38 — a fan collage of pictures of the two of them hanging out. Taylor attended a Vienna concert with Harry in July 2023 and was then seen touring the city with him the day after. He reciprocated, showing up to the opening night of her play, The Effect, the following month in August.
All seemed well as the two were pictured getting cozy a few times over the following year, but the relationship eventually fizzled out, with Taylor calling it off, according to the source. She had previously opened up about how hard it was for her to move to London and being forced to quit another relationship to do so.
“You are going to be hurt — that’s the tax,” she said in an interview with The Face magazine. “The tax on a real relationship is the reality that you will get hurt, you will [have] grief, something will be lost at some point and that’s OK. It’s worth it,” Taylor added.
The insider says that now, the grief is all Harry’s as she moves on with movie star Michael. “They didn’t end on bad terms, but it was a huge blow for him, it’s the first time he’s ever been dumped so to see her with someone new has hit a real nerve.”
To make it worse, they all still live in London, which is grating the former 1D member as pictures of their new romance make headlines. “She’s in London with a new guy, doing all the stuff they used to do together, which makes it even harder,” the insider explains.
“And it’s not like it’s just any guy, it’s Michael B. Jordan. Harry is actually a fan of his. He loved Black Panther and Creed, so it’s not like he can even turn his nose up and say she’s downgraded, the guy’s a pretty intimidating love rival.”
This isn’t even the first time the two have competed over a girl, either. While Harry can boast an impressive rolodex of exes, the Black Panther star can as well, including Kendall Jenner. The reality star was linked romantically to Michael back in 2015, though she tried to play it down and claim he was too focused on his career, while Harry and Kendall, 29, dated on and off from 2013 to 2019.
Once again, “Harry is definitely feeling the sting.”