Billy Ray Cyrus Opens up About New Romance with Elizabeth Hurley

The musician spoke about how his connection with the model came to be—just as his marriage ended. The pair confirmed their romance in a recent Instagram post.

In an exclusive excerpt obtained by People from his upcoming interview on "The Ty Bentli Show," Billy Ray Cyrus recalled how his relationship with Elizabeth Hurley began. The model entered his life just as it was falling apart.

They met on the set of the 2022 film "Christmas in Paradise" in the Caribbean island of Nevis. Cyrus had just separated from his ex-wife, Tish Cyrus, that April.

He shared that they filmed only a few scenes together, but each time, there was chemistry. "We just laughed, and it was at a time I wasn’t laughing a lot," he admitted.

He said the "oddest part" of their encounters was just how much they laughed together. "I figured we were so different but in some very strange way we had way more in common than we had different," he reflected.

They didn’t speak for two years after filming wrapped, and a difficult period in Cyrus’s life began. He even reached a point where he wondered if life could get any harder. "And in this moment... a friend reached out," he recalled.

At the time, Cyrus didn’t recognize the number of the individual reaching out, but he would later learn it was none other than Hurley. Her message assured Cyrus that he had a friend in his corner—she was that friend.

Speaking more about their bond, he said, "If all we ever were [is] the friends that we are, I would take that. [...] If you can laugh together, you can make it through everything." The couple went official with their relationship with a joint "Happy Easter" post on Instagram.

Alongside the greeting was a photo of them cozying up to each other on a farm. Dressed casually and leaning on a wooden fence, Cyrus planted a kiss on Hurley’s face, which she happily accepted.