I Kissed A (former) PM: Justin Trudeau and Katy Perry dating rumours confirmed?

We all need a bit of respite from punishing headlines right now and despite those who casually dismiss celebrity culture as trivial fodder, it does occasionally provide some much-needed levity. And just when we thought we had met 2025’s most wonderfully unlikely celebrity pairing, it seems that Justin Trudeau and Katy Perry are vying for the title.

The summertime rumours of a romance between the former Canadian Prime Minister, 53, and the 'I Kissed A Girl' singer, 40, seem to have been confirmed. 

This weekend, photographs of the pair embracing were published - showing the would-be couple canoodling on a yacht off the coast of Santa Barbara, California. 

Perry announced her split from Pirates of the Caribbean and The Lord of the Rings actor Orlando Bloom in July. The two never married but have a five-year-old daughter. 

Trudeau resigned as prime minister in March and announced two years ago that he and wife Sophie Grégoire had split after 18 years of marriage. The two share three children.  

While Trudeau and Perry have not publicly confirmed the relationship, the photos have been making waves online.

Trudeau and Perry first sparked dating buzz back in July after being spotted on an intimate dinner date in Montreal. Trudeau was later seen at Perry's "Lifetimes" tour stop in Canada. 

Perry released her seventh album ‘143’ in September 2024, amid controversies surrounding working with producer Dr Luke, who was embroiled in a long-running legal dispute with Kesha after she accused him of rape and abuse. The first single of the album, ‘Woman’s World’, was panned online, with Euronews Culture describing it as a “pseudo-empowerment anthem whose faux-feminist pandering struck every regressive note in the book.” 

In our review of the album, we wrote: “Everything feels feigned, overripe, and completely out of step with the times. Not that there isn’t room in 2024 for unpretentious nostalgic throwbacks or some straightforward bubblegum pop. (...) However, Perry’s efforts are half-baked and crucially, no fun. It’s certainly not with this collection of mediocre electro-pop duds which sound like the bland backing soundtrack to insert Love Island-style dating show here that she’s going to convince her fans to put down Chappell Roan, Charli XCX and Dua Lipa for a while to return to the KatyCat corner.” 

Earlier this year, Perry was also criticised for being part of a controversial space flight mission, something we called out as “a crass PR stunt” and “a ludicrously expensive, environmentally damaging and massively tone-deaf photo op masquerading as happy-clappy activism.” Read more about it here.  

Still, her year seems to be looking up, and both she and Trudeau have potentially given us this year’s most unexpected couple. We’ll see what the tail end of the year brings... For now, at least the pair have temporarily distracted us from, granted, the things that matter. Which is fine once in a while.