Laura Dern Addresses Bradley Cooper Dating Rumors After Being Spotted Together

Just because Laura Dern and Bradley Cooper were spotted having lunch together this summer does not mean the two are dating. Speculation that the Big Little Lies star was dating the A Star Is Born filmmaker sparked when they were first seen together in New York City this past July. However, Dern confirms the two are just friends.

“We’re amazing friends. We’re so lucky. And we’re family,” Dern, 52, told Us Weekly at an event in Los Angeles on Saturday.

Dern said it comes as no surprise that people would be interested in an outing with Cooper, 44, since he is one of Hollywood’s most popular leading men.

“I mean, everybody’s always gonna comment about whatever seems intriguing, and he’s the greatest human, and one of my best friends in the world,” the two-time Oscar nominee said. “So I don’t blame anyone for having deep curiosity about his life cause he’s spectacular.”

Dern was not the only famous friend Cooper was spotted eating out with over the summer. Cooper had dinner with Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour in New York in July. That sparked some dating speculation on Twitter, but the two were seen going their separate ways after the dinner.

Cooper has been single since he split from supermodel Irina Shayk in June. The couple, who started dating in 2015, are parents to 2-year-old daughter Lea De Seine.

Dern and Cooper have never worked together professionally, but that has not stopped them from being friends. During a May interview with The New York Times, Dern even called Cooper a “generous director.”

While Dern shut down rumors of a romantic relationship with Cooper, she still left the door open for a Big Little Lies Season 3. The show has yet to be renewed after the mixed response from Season 2 earlier this year and the behind-the-scenes controversies.

“We love each other,” Dern said of the cast, which includes Reese Witherspoon and Nicole Kidman. “They’re all so amazing. So it’s really cool.”

The show’s first season earned Dern several awards, including an Emmy and Golden Globe. She told Us Weekly she loves playing her character, Renata.

“To be honest, every single moment I get to play her [Renata] is stand out cause I love that character so much,” she told the magazine. “We are so lucky that people connect to it [the show] so much and, we really love it, love making it. And I’m a fan. So, I’m happy other people find it something interesting too.”

Last week, Kidman said she recently spoke with Witherspoon about a third season, but nothing is set in stone.

“I mean we were both saying it’s one of the best experiences we’ve ever had,” she said, reports Radio Times. “It’s definitely not right now, but we’re definitely exploring it.”

Photo credit: George Pimentel/Getty Images for TIFF (Bradley Cooper); Vivien Killilea/Getty Images (Laura Dern)