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At first, Sandra Bullock and Jesse James seemed like the perfect couple. On the red carpet and in photographs, the celebrity pair looked like a match made in heaven. But once tabloid rumors started surfacing about numerous cheating scandals on James’ part, everything took a turn for the worse. Shortly after the rumors began to come out, the Miss Congeniality actor moved out of their California home and started making plans for a divorce.

As it turns out, their split was one of the messiest, most humiliating breakups in the history of Hollywood romances. Keep reading to find out why.

Jesse James and Actress Sandra Bullock arrive at the 2010 Vanity Fair Oscar Party
Jesse James and Actress Sandra Bullock arrive at the 2010 Vanity Fair Oscar Party | Ethan Miller/WireImage

Why did Jesse James and Sandra Bullock get divorced?

One of the main reasons James and Bullock split was due to the former reality star’s numerous cheating scandals. Yet, several other factors led to the end of their marriage. According to James in an interview with Howard Stern (via US Weekly,) he never believed that his ex-wife loved him back.

“I always felt like any moment that rug was going to be yanked out,” he said, referring to his relationship with Bullock. And when referencing her Oscars acceptance speech when she announced how much she loved James, he still couldn’t believe her. “Yeah, she could stand there in front of the world and say she loved me, but in my mind, I was thinking, ‘Yeah bulls***…’ You don’t love me.'”

Jesse James admits he was ‘the problem’ in their relationship

According to the former reality star, he didn’t cheat on Bullock right away. “It took a couple of years,” he said. “It was like a very short bubble…It was hard. I married America’s sweetheart, and she’s one of the biggest stars in the world, but I’m still this f***ed up kid from Long Beach,” he explained.

“I did really love her, and I did really care for her,” he told Stern. “The stuff that I did that was bad, I don’t think necessarily nullifies everything I felt…I really did have real feelings for her. The problem was me.”

The ‘Bird box’ star has since moved on from her divorce

TV personality Jesse James and Actress Sandra Bullock arrive at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards
TV personality Jesse James and Actress Sandra Bullock arrive at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards | Steve Granitz/WireImage

Thankfully, Bullock is grateful for her divorce from James because it led her to where she is today. She tells The Independent that it’s when you stop looking that you end up finding everything you’ve ever wanted.

“My life went the way it went because it was supposed to be that way,” she says of their messy split. “Sometimes you have to open up your mind and wait. I can say that because I see the bigger picture, but when you’re in it, you’re like: ‘When is my family coming?’ I was there. I know what that feels like. And at some point, you almost let go of the idea, and when you do, all of a sudden, the universe goes: ‘Oh, you finally let go? Here you go. This is it…And you go: ‘Oh my god, that’s more beautiful than anything I ever imagined.'”