Jessica Simpson said she would ‘never forget’ how Ashton Kutcher reacted when she told him she was a virgin at the age of 22 during her time as a guest star on his series That ’70s Show.
The 45-year-old singer-actress opened up about the unusual exchange she had with the actor during a segment for Entertainment Tonight on Thursday in which she looked back on some of her past TV interviews.
Simpson watched a clip of herself from 23 years ago as she spoke about her arc on the show playing a character named Annette Berkardt, a love interest of Kutcher’s character, Michael Kelso.
In an art-imitates-life twist, the storyline had her character Annette telling Kutcher’s Kelso that she was a virgin around the time that Simpson had publicly declared that she was waiting until marriage to have sex.
In the 2002 exchange, Simpson said, ‘I was just shooting a scene with Ashton — Michael — and I was telling him that we couldn’t do it because I was a virgin.’
In the present day interview, Simpson — who recently celebrated her eighth year of sobriety from alcohol — laughed about the decades-old clip.
Jessica Simpson, 45, opened up about an unusual exchange she had with Ashton Kutcher when she was in her early 20s — and still a virgin
Simpson guest starred on That ’70s Show as Annette Berkardt, a love interest of Kutcher’s character, Michael Kelso
She said that Kutcher didn’t understand why she had abstained from sexual relations until exchanging vows.
‘I’ll never forget telling Ashton I was a virgin,’ Simpson said. ‘He was like, “Why?”‘
Simpson continued: ‘I was like, “Because I haven’t met my husband yet.”‘
Simpson, who was promoting her perfume Mystic Canyon, also chatted with ET about a gig in which she had a wardrobe malfunction at New York City’s Madison Square Garden, which her pal Ricky Martin was on hand to witness.
Simpson and and estranged husband Eric Johnson, 46, are parents to three children: daughter Maxwell, 13; son Ace, 12; and daughter Birdie, six.
Simpson and Johnson, a former NFL tight end who played for the San Francisco 49ers and New Orleans Saints, wed after four years of dating in July 2014, but they split after celebrating their 10th wedding anniversary last summer.
Simpson had previously been married to entertainer Nick Lachey, 52, while Johnson had first been married to Keri D’Angelo.
Simpson previously admitted her father Joe gave her a purity ring to wear when she was 12.
In the present day, Simpson laughed about the decades-old interview, adding that Kutcher didn’t understand why she had abstained from sexual relations until exchanging vows
Simpson said, ‘I’ll never forget telling Ashton I was a virgin. He was like, “Why?” I was like, “Because I haven’t met my husband yet”‘
Simpson spoke about her inner struggles to abstain from consummating her premarital romance with Lachey, calling it a constant test of her ‘commitment to virginity,’ in her 2020 memoir, Open Book.
‘One time, Nick hugged me, and I thought I was just going to burst into flames,’ Simpson said. ‘I had to push him away, not because I didn’t trust him, but because I was teetering on the edge of just giving in.’
Simpson said in her book that she was ‘so frustrated’ at the time by the constant invasive and inappropriate questions about her sex life from reporters.
‘It gave America a storyline to follow,’ Simpson 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.’
