After a whirlwind 20 years of dating fresh-faced models and up-and-coming actresses, fans of Leonardo DiCaprio may have forgotten about one of his first loves: Kristen Zang. DiCaprio dated the Michigan native for four years during his rise to fame. Now, as DiCaprio is being slammed in the press and on social media for his breakup with Camila Morrone, Zang is giving her perspective on the matter.
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Another One Bites The Dust
Everyone has probably gotten the run-down by now: Leonardo DiCaprio has split from Camila Morrone, continuing his streak of only dating women aged 25 and younger.
As Morrone turned 25 in June, the internet waited with bated breath to see if she’d be the one to stick it out. After all, she and DiCaprio had been dating for over five years, so what were the chances that they would call it quits now, so shortly after her 25th birthday?
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While we can’t say what the true inspiration for the split really was, the internet sure didn’t wait to find out. According to the press and social media, Camila Morrone got too old for DiCaprio, and he’s probably on the hunt right now for another impressionable young girl just getting her footing in Hollywood.
However, Kristen Zang isn’t so ready to fall in line with the critics. In a short essay shared with People, Zang is hitting back at the detractors that have so readily attacked DiCaprio and dismissed Morrone in the process.
‘I Think We Can And Should Do Better’
“We were like one big happy family. Leo was a very sweet and thoughtful boyfriend,” Zang recalls about her time with the Wolf of Wall Street star. She reminisces for a spell, insisting that, before DiCaprio reached the height of his stardom, they were like any other young couple. Unfortunately, they parted ways as so many couples do.
“We also had some hard times like all couples do, and broke up for a bit in 1997 and then got back together. Then, about 4 months after my 25th birthday (ha, I know what you’re thinking) it was over for good,” Zang writes. According to Zang, she was the one that called it off. She recalls feeling like she had outgrown her relationship with DiCaprio, and she was ready to move on.
“Now over 20 years later when I read the headlines and online comments with his most recent ex-girlfriend being referred to as having ‘aged out’ or being ‘too old for Leo at 25,'” Zang observes. “Puh-lease (insert dramatic eye roll). I think we can and should do better. What kind of message is this sending to young people?”
‘Life Gets So Much Better After 25’
Zang details how different her life looks now from what she thought it would be in her early twenties. Now a canine nutritionist with her own dog food brand, Zang’s professional and personal lives did a 180 since splitting from DiCaprio all those years ago. “Turns out, I was barely scratching the surface of life at 25,” she notes.
So, what is her issue with the recent press coverage of her ex’s latest breakup? It seems like she’s urging people to afford Morrone a bit more respect and to stop acting like life is over for women at 25.
“As far as Leo and his latest breakup, who knows what happened? Maybe she really cared for him but was just ready for the next chapter, perhaps it’s temporary, or maybe it’s none of our business but can we stop with the ageist headlines and comments?” Zang pleads. Of course, she acknowledges the comedic value of DiCaprio’s dating rap sheet. “But let’s keep the funny memes coming, they’re stellar. Truly.”