Jennifer Aniston has reportedly stepped back from her once-close friendship with Chelsea Handler, after years of bonding gave way to unease over privacy breaches, conflicting personalities, and suspicions of betrayal, according to sources cited by the Daily Mail.
The former Friends star, 56, who has long sought to keep her personal life out of headlines, allegedly grew uncomfortable with Handler's repeated public remarks involving Aniston's past relationships-particularly those tied to ex-husband Brad Pitt and his former partner Angelina Jolie.
"Jen wants to be more private, while Chelsea wants to be front and center, so perhaps a breakdown was always inevitable," a source close to Aniston told the Daily Mail. The two first connected in 2009 when Aniston appeared on Chelsea Lately, and their bond quickly intensified. "They jumped into their friendship headfirst and went from not knowing each other to being together 24/7," the source said.
But friction reportedly began to build when Handler made headline-grabbing remarks about Pitt and Jolie, at one point calling Jolie "a f***ing lunatic" and suggesting she drove Pitt to self-medicate. In one stand-up bit, Handler quipped, "Maybe because he could have been spending the last 12 years at Lake Como hanging out with George Clooney and Matt Damon, instead of being stuck in a house with 85 kids speaking 15 different languages."
Handler also repeatedly brought up Aniston's name in interviews, defending her friend while fueling the public narrative around the Jolie-Pitt-Aniston triangle. While she said in 2016 that "it's so stupid and pathetic" that people think Aniston still cares about Pitt, insiders suggest Aniston grew weary of being dragged into a media storm she had tried to leave behind.
The tension reportedly worsened during Aniston's second marriage to actor Justin Theroux, who, according to a source, considered Handler "rude and obnoxious" and believed she encouraged Aniston "to act like she's single." As Aniston and Theroux's marriage ended in 2018, Aniston allegedly became increasingly concerned about leaks to the press.
"Jennifer became paranoid, thinking that people around her were leaking stories to the press," the insider said. "Chelsea was still talking about Jennifer in interviews, and Jennifer automatically pointed the finger at her."
Handler addressed the rift rumors during a 2019 appearance on Australia's The Project, saying, "Don't believe any of it! We're friends. Don't worry... I love Jen." But the reassurance may have come too late. "It's not the same as it was, and it will never be," the source said.
While the two stars remain cordial-Aniston still likes Handler's Instagram posts-their relationship has reportedly cooled. "Chelsea seemed willing to do anything to be a star, and Jennifer was already a big name so of course there were hints of jealousy," the insider added.
Another source noted that while Handler was part of Aniston's wide circle of friends, she was never considered inner-circle, unlike Courteney Cox or Jimmy Kimmel. Despite past vacations and public appearances together, Handler has been absent from Aniston's recent social media posts that often feature close friends.
