Jessica Simpson had a memorable experience revealing to Ashton Kutcher that she was still a virgin at age 22.
“I’ll never forget telling Ashton I was a virgin,” Simpson, now 45, said in an interview with Entertainment Tonight on Wednesday, November 19. “He was like, ‘Why?’”
Simpson and Kutcher, now 47, worked together on That ‘70s Show season 5, which aired in 2002. Simpson played Annette Berkardt, a love interest for Kutcher’s character, Michael Kelso. Just like in real life, Simpson’s character was a virgin.
When Kutcher asked why Simpson hadn’t taken the next step with anyone, she shared it was “because I haven’t met my husband yet.” Simpson acknowledged to ET that she had known her first husband, Nick Lachey, at that point. (Simpson and Lachey were married from 2003 to 2005.)
“At this age, I’m very innocent,” she said. “I’m not thinking about other people and their sex lives at all.”
Simpson added that she publicly talked about being a virgin because she was often asked questions about her love life.
“They had to have asked me something about sex. It wouldn’t be like, ‘Hi, my name’s Jessica Simpson. I’m a virgin,'” she quipped.
While Simpson acknowledged that some people were likely “shocked” by her being so candid, she’s always been the type of person who is honest.
“But I’ve always been open,” she said. “Legs crossed — but open.”
In her 2020 memoir, Open Book, Simpson reflected on being so public about waiting to have sex until she and Lachey, now 52, wed.
“It gave America a story line to follow,” she wrote. “The sexy virgin and the long-suffering, but still understanding, hot prince. … Nick loved the fact that I was so strong in my faith … [But] I would get so frustrated, asking God to take the blindfold from his eyes and help him find a spiritual center.”
Newlyweds fans know Simpson and Lachey’s marriage didn’t work out, with the pair filing for divorce in 2005. Following their split, the 98 Degrees singer met his now-wife, Vanessa Lachey, whom he wed in 2011. The couple shares three children Camden, 13, Brooklyn, 10, and Phoenix, 8.
Simpson, for her part, married Eric Johnson in 2014. The pair also share three kids: Maxi, 13, Ace, 12, and Birdie, 6. The singer announced earlier this year that she and Johnson, 46, had separated after a decade of marriage.
“Eric and I have been living separately navigating a painful situation in our marriage,” Simpson told Luxury Handbag Shopping in a statement in January. “Our children come first, and we are focusing on what is best for them. We are grateful for all of the love and support that has been coming our way, and appreciate privacy right now as we work through this as a family.”
Amid her ongoing divorce, Simpson recently celebrated a sobriety milestone.
“8 years ago today I made the choice to confront, to confess and to let go of the self sabotaging parts of my life that I was choosing,” the singer wrote via Instagram in November. “Making that decision allowed me to fully live in the pursuit of Gods[sic] purpose for my life. Alcohol silenced my intuition, blocked my dreams and chased my circulating fears of complacency.”
