‘Multiple people brought it up to me’: Kumail Nanjiani dishes on wild gossip involving him and a former first lady

Kumail Nanjiani has revealed that he unexpectedly became the subject of some wildly unfounded gossip this year, after discovering that rumours were circulating about him having an affair with former first lady Michelle Obama. The actor described the bizarre experience as both shocking and oddly amusing.

According to HuffPost, The Eternals star addressed the strange claims while appearing on comedian Caleb Hearon’s So True podcast, which was released on Thursday. When Hearon jokingly offered his “congratulations,” Nanjiani laughed it off and admitted that the rumours actually made him “so excited,” clearly leaning into the absurdity of the situation.

Despite how outlandish the story sounds, Nanjiani explained that the gossip was convincing enough to cause an awkward real-life moment. A mutual friend of Nanjiani and his wife, Emily V. Gordon, reportedly felt compelled to take Gordon aside to mention what they had heard. The friend bluntly told her, “Hey, so I heard that Kumail and Michelle Obama are, like, doing it.”

The rumor was so ridiculous that his wife wasn’t even upset

Nanjiani shared the anecdote with humor, making it clear he saw the situation for what it was: a ridiculous piece of internet gossip that briefly took on a life of its own. He laughed about how quickly the rumor spread across social media, with people speculating and creating wild theories based on absolutely nothing. The actor explained that he found the whole ordeal more amusing than anything else, especially considering how disconnected it was from reality.

He wasn’t bothered by the rumor at all because the whole thing was so absurd. Nanjiani said his wife knew there was no truth to it.

“Multiple people brought it up to me,” Nanjiani said during the podcast. Then he shared the most surprising part: “I’ve never met Michelle Obama.” The former first lady has previously opened up about what frustrates her most after leaving office, though it had nothing to do with politics.

Hearon told Nanjiani that his fake affair was being talked about alongside another rumor. People were also spreading stories about a secret relationship between President Barack Obama and actor Jennifer Aniston.

Nanjiani hadn’t heard about the Obama-Aniston gossip before. He asked Hearon if he thought that rumor was true. The world of celebrity gossip has seen its share of shocking moments recently, including Michelle Trachtenberg’s sudden death that shocked Hollywood.

Hearon replied, “I don’t know, but what I’m saying is, from my frame, Kumail, you’re up there with Jen Aniston in terms of affair rumors.” Nanjiani joked back, “I don’t know, I think Michelle’s slumming it.” His Hulu stand-up special Night Thoughts is now available to watch.